Screening system for functional disability in elderly in Slovenia Tjas ˇa Knific T Knific, M Roz ˇic ˇ National Institute of Public Health, Ljubljana, Slovenia Contact: tjasa.knific@nijz.si Issue/problem: Functional disability (FD) in elderly is representing a major and increasing burden for society. A screening system for FD has been introduced in Slovenia to assess and improve their physical fitness (PF), including muscular strength and balance ability, with the aim to improve their mobility, self-care ability and daily living, and to prevent falls. Description of the problem: Screening system for FD is available to individuals 65 years of age or older. It includes screening interview (WHO DAS 2.0 questionnaire) and two additional tests for assessment of muscular strength (30 second chair stand test, hand grip strength test). In case of FD detection, the individual is invited to additional functional testing with the Slovenian version of the Senior fitness test battery. After the screening, all FD individuals are referred to a workshop, called »I am moving«, where they empower their self for healthy and active life. Results: 238 individuals were screened for FD (25.6 % M and 74.4 % W) in 2016. Average age of screened participants was 71.9 years. FD was present in 74.4 % (18.5 % M and 55.9 % W). Men are better in muscular strength status (9.2 % of FD M and 26.9 % of FD W have average or below average results). Lessons: Screening for FD is a quick and reliable way to evaluate average functional status in elderly. Our experience show that screen- ing for FD and assessment of the physical fitness (PF) also motivates elderly to change their physical activity habits. In order to effectively combat an aging population trend in Slovenia, a National screening program for FD needs to be established in correlation to effective physical activity approaches. Better PF reduce presence of FD among elderly and helps to achieve active aging process of elderly population. Key messages:  Screening for functional disability has shown us the importance of functional status on health of elderly population.  Better physical fitness reduce presence of functional disability. Group-based interventions using integrative nursing for elderly women feeling lonely: study protocol Sebahat Go ¨ zu ¨m A Ilgaz 1 , S Go ¨ zu ¨m 2 1 Faculty of Nursing, Public Health Nursing, Akdeniz University, Antalya, Turkey 2 Faculty of Nursing, Department of Public Health Nursing, Akdeniz University, Antalya, Turkey Contact: sgozum@akdeniz.edu.tr Introduction: While the elderly population is increasing with the extension of the average life span in the world, elders are lonely for reasons such as loss of friends and family, changes in family structure. The feeling of loneliness lowers the quality of life, affects the health of the elderly in the negative and increases the mortality rate. Elderly women are more likely to experience loneliness because women live longer than men. There is a need for care in terms of integrative nursing principles, which is the field of application of holistic (physical, spiritual and social) philoso- phy for the survival and healthy aging of elderly women. Many studies on elderly health focus on only one of the physical, mental and social aspects of health. This study is investigating the effects of group-based interventions on the physical, psychological and social health of the elderly women with high level of loneliness according to the principles of integrative nursing. Methods: A randomised controlled trial will be conducted with elderly women who feel lonely. After the level of loneliness of elderly women will be determined by the Loneliness Scale for the Elderly in the Family Health Center, women with high levels of loneliness will be randomly assigned to the intervention and control group. Group-based interventions such as walking, sociocultural activities (sightseeing, picnics, theater and cinema) will continue for 12 weeks. Pre-tests and post-tests will be completed during home visits made by the researcher. In addition, interventions will be applied to the health problems in the intervention group using Omaha System. Discussion: This study will provide evidence regarding the effectiveness of group-based interventions that include the comprehensive (physical, psychological and social) evaluation of their health, and will contribute to providing care in terms of integrative nursing principles and Omaha system. Key messages:  Group-based interventions should be planned to reduce loneliness.  There is a need for care in terms of integrative nursing principles for the survival and healthy aging of older women. Social differences in the frequent use of emergency departments by older persons in Stockholm County Megan Doheny M Doheny 1 , J Agerholm 2 , P Scho ¨n 2 , B Burstro ¨m 1 1 Karolnska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden 2 Aging Research Center, Karolinska Institute and Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden Contact: megan.doheny@ki.se Background: The number of visits by older people to emergency department (ED) care is rising in Sweden. Among older persons an ED visit is a stressful event, which potentially could have been prevented or treated in other outpatient care. Frequent ED use (4 visits in a year) by older persons might be reflecting issues in the organisation of the healthcare system to address their needs. We aimed to study the characteristics of older people that utilise ED care and identify which groups are most at risk of being frequent users. Methods: A population-based register study analysing the utilisation of ED care by N = 356,679, aged 65+ years in Stockholm County in 2014. We linked socio-demographic data from 2013 to the Stockholm County Councils Healthcare data in 2014, with the variables age, sex, income groups, country of birth, living situation, area residence, multi-morbidity, dying, home-health and outpatient care. Stratified multivariable logistic regression analysis were used to assess the characteristics associated with being a frequent ED user. Results: There were 161,973 visits to hospital based ED care by n = 89,541 individuals 65+ years which accounted for 27% of all ED visits in Stockholm in 2014. Among ED users 2.5% were identified as frequent ED users. Those in the lowest income group had a three-fold greater odds of being a frequent ED user than those in the highest. In the adjusted model, the odds of being frequent user were reduced by 12-44% for those in the lowest income group, however, a socio-economic gradient remained in all groups. Conclusions: Socio-economic differences observed in the frequent use of ED by older persons highlight that inequalities persist as we age and older persons that are frequent ED users are a vulnerable group in greater need of care. The organisation of care for older persons should be reviewed to better meet their needs, which would be more efficient and cost-effective for the overall health care system. 390 European Journal of Public Health, Vol. 28, Supplement 4, 2018 Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eurpub/article/28/suppl_4/cky214.235/5186776 by guest on 18 February 2023