Higher patient activation is associated with lower odds of functional limitation in older adults with chronic diseases

Objectives

To investigate the association between patient activation and functional limitation among older adults living with multiple chronic conditions.

Methods

We performed a secondary analysis of a parent study, which examined the relationship between self-efficacy and both inflammatory biomarkers and frailty. We conducted multivariate logistic regression while controlling for the patients’ sociodemographic variables and comorbidities to examine the association between self-reported functional limitation and patient activation as measured by the Patient Activation Measure (PAM-10).

Results

We included 159 participants with a mean age of 82.00 ± 6.27 years. While controlling for the patients’ demographic, socioeconomic status, and comorbidities, we found that functional limitation decreases by 16 % (OR 0.84, 95 % CI: 0.75, 0.94, p = 0.002) for every one unit increase in patient activation score.

Conclusion

Higher patient activation scores were associated with decreased odds of functional limitation. Providers may consider the potential value of using behavioral activation strategies to address functional decline.