TY - JOUR T1 - Proceed with caution: authors’ response JF - British Journal of General Practice JO - Br J Gen Pract SP - 124 LP - 125 DO - 10.3399/bjgp14X677419 VL - 64 IS - 620 AU - David Beales AU - Alastair Tulloch Y1 - 2014/03/01 UR - http://bjgp.org/content/64/620/124.2.abstract N2 - In the December issue Iliffe1 assured us that our article ‘anticipatory care of older patients represented the triumph of hope over experience’.2 We find this a bewildering claim in view of the extensive research evidence to the contrary. No less than six controlled trials between 1979 and 1993 showed that a programme of care, tailored to the special needs of those in advanced old age, reduced the time spent in institutional care (hospitals and nursing homes). They … ER -