Nurse-led model seeks to address frailty in elder adults

The Frailty Care Model provides a nurse-developed framework to clarify how nurses can move beyond identifying frailty in elder adults and take actionable, individualized interventions. Published in Geriatric Nursing, the study is the first empirical test of the Cleveland Clinic model, which conceptualizes frailty across three interconnected domains. The domains cover baseline social, environmental and physical conditions associated with aging; treatable risks such as depression, malnutrition, cognitive changes and physical inactivity; and limitations of frailty, including reduced strength, endurance and mobility. The researchers found patients at risk of malnutrition were more than five times likely to be frail. Clinicians who screen at-risk patients for isolation, depression and other mental health concerns, and malnutrition can intervene to reduce frailty. (Cleveland Clinic article, 6/1/26)