The purpose of the study is to develop frailty and complexity computation algorithms based on the French version of the interRAI-HC and, in doing so, to provide homecare nurses with valid and reliable screening tools for their routine practice. By relying on a prospective observational case-control longitudinal study, the study intends to assess the predictive validity of the proposed indices with respect to undesirable health outcomes. Repeated measurement occasions, separated by 6-month intervals, will also allow for estimation of intra-individual change in frailty and complexity. In the study, elders living in the community and aged 65 or older are the target population, and three samples will be considered based on the a priori risks of adverse outcomes (case 1: formal home service recipients; case 2: formal home care recipients; control: free of formal home care or service). These groups will be compared on the observed rates of frailty and complexity and on their evolution over time. Results will allow for identification of subgroups of the aged population for whom early screening of frailty and complexity appears most relevant. Based on the findings, practice guideline will be proposed. They will entail the interpretation of the scores and recommendations for mounting adapted preventive strategies. Finally, the study will contribute to enhancing knowledge on the relation between frailty, a well-known concept in gerontology, and complexity, a concept increasingly referred to in the care literature but that still deserves operational and consensual definitions.

Inclusion Criteria:

• living in the community (private home)
• resident of Canton Geneva, Switzerland
• ability to hold a conversation in French (expression, comprehension)
• oriented in time and space

Exclusion Criteria:

• living in hospital / nursing home
• not resident of Canton Geneva, Switzerland
• not fluent in French
• disoriented in time and space
• person under tutorship

Community-dwelling older adults (aged 65 or older), fluent in French, living at home in Canton Geneva, Switzerland and volunteering to participate to the study.

Data and analytical codes will be shared in the form of computerized data files in SPSS format (*.sav, *.sps). Variable specification are written in SPSS syntaxes (*.sps files). Syntaxes define for each variable (raw or recoded) its short name, its type (date, string, numerical), its label, its response values and labels, the values associated with missing data and the measurement scale. Whenever relevant, the syntax is annotated, providing, for example, the reference of the published guideline for recoding. All variable specifications are summarized in a codebook (generated by SPSS), which is completed by specifications on the data collection procedure and on the sources used as references for recoding. The dataset is free of individual personal information (named, dated of birth, addresses, etc.); unique numerical codes are used to identify participants.

At the end of the study, the recoded data set (SPSS format, cleaned and coded), the data codebook, references for the measurement instruments and all other relevant information related to the project (e.g. protocol) will be deposited at DARIS/FORS for data sharing and reuse.

Data access and reuse, as well as intellectual property rights issues will be addressed through FORS standard contractual arrangements for a) the conditions of data deposit and b) the conditions of data use by a third party.