scholarly journals Transitions to Long-Term Residential Care Settings

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 223-223
Author(s):  
Bram de Boer ◽  
Hilde Verbeek ◽  
Joseph Gaugler

Abstract During their life course, many older adults encounter a transition between care settings, for example, a permanent move into long-term residential care. This care transition is a complex and often fragmented process, which is associated with an increased risk of negative health outcomes, rehospitalisation, and even mortality. Therefore, care transitions should be avoided where possible and the process for necessary transitions should be optimised to ensure continuity of care. Transitional care is therefore a key research topic. The TRANS-SENIOR European Joint Doctorate (EJD) network builds capacity for tackling a major challenge facing European long-term care systems: the need to improve care for an increasing number of care-dependent older adults by avoiding unnecessary transitions and optimising necessary care transitions. During this symposium, four presenters from the Netherlands and Switzerland will present different aspects of transitions into long-term residential care. The first speaker presents the results of a co-creation approach in developing an intervention aimed at preventing unnecessary care transitions. The second speaker presents an overview of interventions aiming to improve a transition from home to a nursing home, highlighting the clear mismatch between theory and practice. The third speaker presents the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on transitions into long-term residential care using an ethnographic study in a long-term residential care facility in Switzerland. The final speaker discusses the results of a recent Delphi study on key factors influencing implementing innovations in transitional care. The discussant will relate previous findings on transitional care with a U.S. perspective.

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-16
Author(s):  
Briony Jain ◽  
Viktoryia Kalesnikava ◽  
Joseph E. Ibrahim ◽  
Briana Mezuk

Abstract This commentary addresses the increasing public health problem of suicide in later life and presents the case for preventing suicide in residential long-term care settings. We do so by examining this issue from the perspective of three levels of stakeholders – societal, organisational and individual – considering the relevant context, barriers and implications of each. We begin by discussing contemporary societal perspectives of ageing; the potential impact of ageism on prevention of late-life suicide; and the roles of gender and masculinity. This is followed by a historical analysis of the origin of residential long-term care; current organisational challenges; and person-centred care as a suicide prevention strategy. Finally, we consider suicide in long-term care from the perspective of individuals, including the experience of older adults living in residential care settings; the impact of suicide on residential care health professionals and other staff; and the impact of suicide bereavement on family, friends and other residents. We conclude with recommendations for policy reform and future research. This commentary aims to confront the often unspoken bias associated with preventing suicide among older adults, particularly those living with complex medical conditions, and invoke an open dialogue about suicide prevention in this population and setting.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 629-629
Author(s):  
Silke Metzelthin ◽  
Sandra Zwakhalen ◽  
Barbara Resnick

Abstract Functional decline in older adults often lead towards acute or long-term care. In practice, caregivers often focus on completion of care tasks and of prevention of injuries from falls. This task based, safety approach inadvertently results in fewer opportunities for older adults to be actively involved in activities. Further deconditioning and functional decline are common consequences of this inactivity. To prevent or postpone these consequences Function Focused Care (FFC) was developed meaning that caregivers adapt their level of assistance to the capabilities of older adults and stimulate them to do as much as possible by themselves. FFC was first implemented in institutionalized long-term care in the US, but has spread rapidly to other settings (e.g. acute care), target groups (e.g. people with dementia) and countries (e.g. the Netherlands). During this symposium, four presenters from the US and the Netherlands talk about the impact of FFC. The first presentation is about the results of a stepped wedge cluster trial showing a tendency to improve activities of daily living and mobility. The second presentation is about a FFC training program. FFC was feasible to implement in home care and professionals experienced positive changes in knowledge, attitude, skills and support. The next presenter reports about significant improvements regarding time spent in physical activity and a decrease in resistiveness to care in a cluster randomized controlled trial among nursing home residents with dementia. The fourth speaker presents the content and first results of a training program to implement FFC in nursing homes. Nursing Care of Older Adults Interest Group Sponsored Symposium


Author(s):  
Deanna Gray-Miceli ◽  
William Craelius ◽  
Kang Li

Older adults over age 65 are susceptible to loss of balance for a variety of reasons including drops in blood pressure with standing (orthostatic hypotension [OH]; Gray-Miceli, Ratcliffe, Thomasson, Quigley, Li & Craelius, 2016). OH is a treatable condition, and cause of falls if detected. Nearly 50% of the 1.43 million older adults in long-term care experience falls (National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, 2017). Falls often occur among older adults in long term care during periods of transitioning, where older adults are susceptible to loss of balance and increased risk to fall. As found in our prior work, older adults with OH may not always experience classic dizziness symptoms that may accompany OH (Gray-Miceli, Ratcliffe, Liu, Wantland & Johnson, 2012; Gray). To better understand this phenomenon, our project adapted a cellphone as an inertial measurement unit attached to the person’s center of mass to determine body sway. The objective of this pilot study was to determine if a relationship was observable during the sit to stand maneuver (StS) while older adults wore a Smartphone measuring three dimensions of motion among older adults who had evidenced of symptoms or OH. A sample of four older adults from a rehabilitation facility who were 65 years of age, receiving physical therapy at the time of testing, were cognitively intact, able to perform the StS maneuver and had no active cancer, fractures or serious injuries were recruited and enrolled. Oh determinations, pulse rate and symptoms of dizziness were elicited during a 30 second StS maneuver. In Patient A and Patient B we present the Z-axis and X-axis of front acceleration and patterns of motion side by side for case comparison while highlighting clinical findings. In Patient B, a greater degree of sway at the start of the StS maneuver is noted. Patient B’s blood pressure also dropped 33 mmHg and there were symptoms of dizziness. Drops in mean arterial blood pressure were greater among those with symptomatic OH. Limitations of this pilot include noise, selection of filters and time stamping of the data. Project aims are to help clinicians prevent falls by further assessing symptoms among elders who suffer from LOB and OH.


2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 209-216
Author(s):  
Jiska Cohen-Mansfield

Purpose The impact of COVID-19 has most dramatically affected the older population, and nursing homes have become infection hotspots. As a response, governments have ordered isolation of older adults in geriatric institutions owing to the high risk of critical illness and mortality. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the potential impact of current policies on nursing homes and community-based care and provide suggestions for improvement in care. Design/methodology/approach Taking the situation in Israel as an example, the author discussed major systemic problems pertaining to long-term care facilities and to community based care; the neglect of mental health; systemic deficiencies in end of life care; and the need to revise communications concerning COVID-19. Findings Within each of the identified areas, recommended changes in strategy, policy and practice can help mitigate the dramatic impact of COVID-19 on the living experience of the older population. Originality/value Drawing on the Israeli experience, this paper presents current shortcomings in the policy response to COVID-19 regarding nursing homes and community-based care and provides recommendations that are applicable to other contexts as well. Although some of these have been suggested or even practiced in some locations, many continue to be neglected and have not been discussed even as COVID-19 continues to infect societies around the globe.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 90-90
Author(s):  
Meghan Jenkins Morales ◽  
Stephanie Robert

Abstract At some point in our lives, approximately 70% of us will need support to help with daily care. Without adequate assistance we may experience unmet care need consequences (UCNC) – such as skipping meals, going without clean clothes, or taking the wrong medication. This study examines the likelihood of experiencing UCNC related to gaps in assistance with activities of daily living (ADL) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) across long-term care arrangements: informal community care, paid community care, residential care, and nursing homes. We examine a sample of older adults receiving assistance in a care arrangement (N=2,499) from the nationally representative 2015 National Health and Aging Trends Study. Cross-sectional and longitudinal regression models, adjusting for differences in demographic and health/functioning characteristics, examine if type of care arrangement in 2015 is associated with UCNC in 2015 and change in UCNC by 2017. Holding all else constant, there were no significant differences in UCNC related to ADLs in 2015 across care arrangements. However, those receiving paid community care were more likely to experience UCNC related to IADLs (going without clean clothes, groceries, or a hot meal and making medication errors) compared to those receiving only informal care (OR=1.64, p<.05) or residential care (OR=2.19, p<.01). By 2017, paid care was also significantly associated with continued UCNC, but older adults in informal care arrangements were most likely to experience a new UCNC. Results suggest improving/expanding assistance with IADLs among community-dwelling older adults, and promoting equitable access to residential care, to reduce UCNC.


2013 ◽  
Vol 31 (31_suppl) ◽  
pp. 125-125
Author(s):  
Allison Nicole Lipitz Snyderman ◽  
Kent Sepkowitz ◽  
Elena B. Elkin ◽  
Laura C. Pinheiro ◽  
Peter Bach

125 Background: Long-term central venous catheters (CVCs) facilitate venous access to administer intravenous fluids and treatments such as chemotherapy. However, CVCs can also be a source of harmful bloodstream infections, a risk that may be underappreciated. Our objective was to assess the impact of long-term CVC use on the risk of infections in a population-based cohort of cancer patients. Methods: Retrospective analysis using the population-based SEER-Medicare dataset for patients over age 65, diagnosed from 2005 to 2007 with invasive colorectal cancer (n = 36,272), head and neck cancers (n = 8,459), lung cancer (n = 56,770), pancreatic cancer (n = 10,536), or non-Hodgkin lymphoma (n = 14,432), or invasive or non-invasive breast cancer (n = 42,271). Cox proportional hazards regression was used to examine the impact of CVC use on infection risk, with CVC exposure treated as a time-varying predictor. We used multivariable analysis and propensity score methods to control for patient characteristics. Results: Adjusting for demographic and disease characteristics, long-term CVCs significantly increased the risk of infection by at least 40%, across all cancer types (Table). The greatest effect of CVCs on infection risk was in patients with breast cancer. Conclusions: Long-term CVC use is associated with an increased risk of infections for older adults with cancer. Careful assessment of the need for long-term CVCs, and targeted strategies to reduce infections for patients requiring their use, are critical to improving cancer care quality. [Table: see text]


2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 123-129
Author(s):  
Sarah Crowe ◽  
A. Fuchsia Howard ◽  
Gregory Haljan

ObjectivesTo better understand the rationale for acute care usage among long term care ventilated residents.BackgroundChronically critically ill ventilated individuals experience complex health challenges, with many not surviving one year post initial hospitalization discharge. Recent research reports high acute care readmission rates for chronically critically ill patients, yet most studies have not examined the reasons patients are readmitted, nor the treatment and care provided during these stays.MethodA retrospective medical chart reviews of all emergency department visits and acute care admissions, occurring from August 2014 to August 2016, of chronically critically ill ventilated individuals living in a residential care facility in the province of British Columbia, Canada was conducted.ResultsThere were 49 emergency department visits and 56 acute care admissions over a 2 year period by 20 chronically critically ill ventilated residential care patients. The majority of acute care admissions were related to pneumonia, whereas the majority of emergency department visits were not specified.ConclusionChronically critically ill ventilated long term care residents are high users of acute care resources, frequently admitted for pneumonia.


Hypertension ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 76 (6) ◽  
pp. 1945-1952
Author(s):  
Michael E. Ernst ◽  
Enayet K. Chowdhury ◽  
Lawrence J. Beilin ◽  
Karen L. Margolis ◽  
Mark R. Nelson ◽  
...  

High office blood pressure variability (OBPV) in midlife increases the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), but the impact of OBPV in older adults without previous CVD is unknown. We conducted a post hoc analysis of ASPREE trial (Aspirin in Reducing Events in the Elderly) participants aged 70-years and older (65 for US minorities) without history of CVD events at baseline, to examine risk of incident CVD associated with long-term, visit-to-visit OBPV. CVD was a prespecified, adjudicated secondary end point in ASPREE. We estimated OBPV using within-individual SD of mean systolic BP from baseline and first 2 annual visits. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to calculate hazard ratios (HR) and 95% CI for associations with CVD events. In 16 475 participants who survived to year 2 without events, those in the highest tertile of OBPV had increased risk of CVD events after adjustment for multiple covariates, when compared with participants in the lowest tertile (HR, 1.36 [95% CI, 1.08–1.70]; P =0.01). Similar increased risk was observed for ischemic stroke (HR, 1.56 [95% CI, 1.04–2.33]; P =0.03), heart failure hospitalization, or death (HR, 1.73 [95% CI, 1.07–2.79]; P =0.02), and all-cause mortality (HR, 1.27 [95% CI, 1.04–1.54]; P =0.02). Findings were consistent when stratifying participants by use of antihypertensive drugs, while sensitivity analyses suggested the increased risk was especially for individuals whose BP was uncontrolled during the OBPV estimation period. Our findings support increased OBPV as a risk factor for CVD events in healthy older adults with, or without hypertension, who have not had such events previously. Registration— URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov ; Unique identifiers: NCT01038583; URL: https://www.isrctn.com ; Unique identifiers: ISRCTN83772183.


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