EP13 Perceptions and experiences of residents and relatives of emergencies in care homes: systematic review and meta-synthesis

2021 ◽  
Vol 38 (9) ◽  
pp. A6.2-A6
Author(s):  
Despina Laparidou ◽  
Ffion Curtis ◽  
Withanage Iresha Udayangani Jayawickrama ◽  
Dedunu Weligamage ◽  
Marishona Ortega ◽  
...  

BackgroundMedical emergencies in care homes, both residential and nursing care homes, are common and costly, often resulting in calls to an out-of-hours general practitioner (GP) or Emergency Medical Services (EMS). Ambulance attendance frequently results in conveyance to hospital and the concomitant high costs and risks of, often prolonged, hospitalisation. Previous reviews have focussed on various stakeholder perceptions of transfer to hospital. The aim of this systematic review was to provide a comprehensive synthesis of the perceptions and experiences of care home residents and their family members, who have experienced medical emergencies in a care home setting.MethodsWe searched five electronic databases, supplemented with internet searches and forward and backward citation tracking from the included studies and review articles. Data were synthesised thematically following the Thomas and Harden approach. The CASP Qualitative Checklist was used to assess the quality of the included studies of this review.ResultsThe search strategy identified 6,140 citations. After removing duplicates and excluding citations based on title and abstract, and full-text screening, ten studies from four countries (Australia, Canada, UK, and US) were included in the review and meta-synthesis. All included studies were considered of acceptable quality. Through an iterative approach, we developed six analytical themes. 1. Infrastructure and process requirements in care homes to prevent and address emergencies; 2. The decision to transfer to hospital – a perfect storm; 3. Challenges of transfer and hospitalisation for older patients; 4. Good communication vital for desirable outcomes; 5. Legal, regulatory and ethical concerns; and 6. Trusting relationships enabled residents to feel safe.ConclusionsThe emergency care experience for care home residents can be enhanced by ensuring resources, staff capacity and processes for high quality care. Building trusting relationships underpinned by good communication and attention to ethical practice were also identified as important factors.

2021 ◽  
pp. 016402752198907
Author(s):  
Andrew S. Gilbert ◽  
Stephanie M. Garratt ◽  
Leona Kosowicz ◽  
Joan Ostaszkiewicz ◽  
Briony Dow

There is increasing interest in harnessing aged care residents’ perspectives to drive quality improvement in aged care homes. We conducted a systematic review of qualitative evidence including literature examining residents’ descriptions of “quality of care” in aged care homes, using database searches and screening records according to eligibility criteria. Three independent reviewers conducted quality assessment of forty-six eligible articles and performed thematic synthesis of articles’ findings. We distinguish nine key themes describing factors influencing quality care: staffing levels, staff attitude, continuity, routine, environment, decision-making and choice, dignity of risk, activities, and culture and spirituality. While many themes were consistent across studies, residents’ prioritization of them varied. Aged care home residents have differing conceptions of quality care as well as heterogeneous and dynamic needs and preferences. Care providers are best able to facilitate quality care when intentional efforts are made to recognize this and tailor delivery of services the individual residents.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca Mathews ◽  
Chris O'Malley ◽  
Jenny M Hall ◽  
Leah Macaden ◽  
Sandra MacRury

BACKGROUND Diabetes is increasing in prevalence and complexity in the care home setting, affecting up to a quarter of care home residents. Health outcomes for these residents are impacted by management of the disease, health care professionals (HCPs)’ decision-making skills within the care home setting, and access to specialist services. The use of technology has the potential to recognize opportunities for early intervention that enables efficient responsive care, taking a fundamental role in linking the care home community to wider multidisciplinary teams for support. OBJECTIVE The aim of this paper was to identify evidence that explores factors relevant to the use of technology in and around the care home setting to aid in the management of diabetes. METHODS Databases searched using a structured prespecified approach included: PubMed, CINAHL (Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature), OVID Nursing database, Scopus, MEDLINE, the Cochrane Library, and the King’s Fund from 2012 to 2017: handsearching was undertaken additionally for any gray literature. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic review and Meta-Analysis Protocol was used as protocol with Risk of Bias in Systematic reviews a tool to assess the risk of bias across studies. Studies had to include interventions that combined technology to or from the care home setting to support residents living with diabetes. RESULTS The combined search strategy identified a total of 493 electronic records. Of these, 171 papers were screened for eligibility, 66 full papers were accessed, and 13 have been included in this study. Qualitative synthesis has identified different strands of research evidence in what and how technology is currently being used in and around care homes to enhance diabetes management. New initiatives and implementations of technology and emerging models of care that included the use of technology have also been included. CONCLUSIONS By triangulating the perspectives of HCPs, practitioners, specialists, and members of the care home community, the authors anticipate that this review will represent an up-to-date, evidence-based overview of the potential for using technology within the care home setting for diabetes management as well as stimulate research in this area.


2019 ◽  
pp. bmjspcare-2018-001680
Author(s):  
Aoife Gleeson ◽  
Simon Noble ◽  
Mala Mann

Background Advance care planning (ACP) is a process where patients express their wishes regarding their future healthcare. Its importance has been increasingly recognised in the past decade. As increasing numbers of elderly people are living in care homes, the aim of this review was to identify the most effective ACP interventions to train/educate all levels of healthcare professionals working in care homes. Design A systematic review. Two independent reviewers undertook screening, data extraction and quality assessment. Data sources  Searched from inception to June 2018: Ovid Medline, Ovid Medline in process, Ovid Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, EBSCO Cinahl and Ovid PsycINFO. Results Six studies were included: three before and after studies, one cluster randomised controlled trial (RCT), one non-blinded RCT and one qualitative study. Five studies reported on ACP documentation, three on impact on ACP practice and three studies on healthcare-related outcomes. All quantitative studies reported an improvement in outcomes. In the three studies reporting on health-related outcomes, one showed significant reductions in hospitalisation rate, days and healthcare costs; one reported significant reductions in hospital deaths; and the third showed reductions in hospital days and deaths. A meta-analysis could not be performed due to the heterogeneity of the outcome measures. The included qualitative study highlighted perceived challenges to implementing an educational programme in the care home setting. Conclusion There is limited evidence for the effectiveness of ACP training for care home workers. More well-designed studies are needed. Trial registration number CRD42016042385.


2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 575-583 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raymond Smith ◽  
Julia Wood ◽  
Fiona Jones ◽  
Sue Turner ◽  
Michael Hurley

Objectives: To explore the experiences of occupational therapists and physiotherapists and to reveal any factors that can facilitate delivering a complex care home intervention promoting meaningful activity. Design: Qualitative interview study using data from three focus groups conducted longitudinally post intervention implementation. Data were analysed thematically. Setting: Three residential care homes in South London, UK. Subjects: All therapists involved in the implementation of the intervention: three occupational therapists and three physiotherapists. Results: Three interconnected themes emerged from the analysis: (1) developing trusting relationships, (2) empowering staff and (3) remaining flexible. Therapists described how successfully implementing a complex care home intervention was dependant on developing trusting relationships with care staff. This enabled the therapists to empower care staff to take ownership of the intervention and help embed it in care home culture, facilitating long-term change. The therapists described how remaining flexible in their approach helped keep care staff engaged for the duration of implementation. Conclusion: This study has revealed several important factors that can help facilitate therapists delivering complex interventions in care homes.


2019 ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura J. Hughes ◽  
Nicolas Farina ◽  
Thomas E. Page ◽  
Naji Tabet ◽  
Sube Banerjee

ABSTRACTBackground:Over 400,000 people live in care home settings in the UK. One way of understanding and improving the quality of care provided is by measuring and understanding the quality of life (QoL) of those living in care homes. This review aimed to identify and examine the psychometric properties including feasibility of use of dementia-specific QoL measures developed or validated for use in care settings.Design:Systematic review.Methods:Instruments were identified using four electronic databases (PubMed, PsycINFO, Web of Science, and CINAHL) and lateral search techniques. Searches were conducted in January 2017. Studies which reported on the development and/or validation of dementia specific QoL instruments for use in care settings written in English were eligible for inclusion. The methodological quality of the studies was assessed using the COSMIN checklist. Feasibility was assessed using a checklist developed specifically for the review.Results:Six hundred and sixteen articles were identified in the initial search. After de-duplication, screening and further lateral searches were performed, 25 studies reporting on 9 dementia-specific QoL instruments for use in care home settings were included in the review. Limited evidence was available on the psychometric properties of many instruments identified. Higher-quality instruments were not easily accessible or had low feasibility of use.Conclusions:Few high-quality instruments of QoL validated for use in care home settings are readily or freely available. This review highlights the need to develop a well-validated measure of QoL for use within care homes that is also feasible and accessible.


2021 ◽  
Vol 05 (02) ◽  
pp. 1-1
Author(s):  
Zena Aldridge ◽  
◽  
Karen Harrison Dening ◽  
◽  
◽  
...  

The United Kingdom’s (UK) older population is higher than the global average. Over the next 20 years, England will see an increase in the number of older people who have higher levels of dependency, dementia, and comorbidity many of whom may require 24-hour care. Currently it is estimated that 70% of residents in nursing and residential care homes either have dementia on admission or develop it whilst residing in the care home. The provision of high-quality care for this population is a challenge with a lack of consistency in the provision of primary care and specialist services and a known gap in knowledge and skills. The NHS Long Term Plan aims to move care closer to home and improve out of hospital care which includes people who live in care homes by introducing Enhanced Health in Care Homes (EHCH). However, such services need to be equipped with the correct skill mix to meet the needs of the care home population. Admiral Nurses are specialists in dementia care and are well placed to support the delivery of EHCH and improve access to specialist support to care home residents, their families, care home staff and the wider health and social care system. This paper discusses current gaps in service provision and how both the EHCH framework, and the inclusion of Admiral Nurses, might redress these and improve outcomes.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anders Malthe Bach-Mortensen ◽  
Ben Verboom ◽  
Ani Movsisyan ◽  
Michelle Degli Esposti

AbstractBackgroundThe adult social care sector is increasingly outsourced to for-profit providers, who constitute the largest provider of care homes in many developed countries. During the COVID-19 pandemic, for-profit providers have been accused of failing their residents by prioritising profits over care, prevention, and caution, which has been reported to result in a higher prevalence of COVID-19 infections and deaths in for-profit care homes. Although many of these reports are anecdotal or based on news reports, there is a growing body of academic research investigating ownership variation across COVID-19 outcomes, which has not been systematically appraised and synthesised.ObjectivesTo identify, appraise, and synthesise the available research on ownership variation in COVID-19 outcomes (outbreaks, infections, deaths, shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) and staff) across for-profit, public, and non-profit care homes for older people, and to update our findings as new research becomes available.DesignLiving systematic review.MethodsThis review was prospectively registered with Prospero (CRD42020218673). We searched 17 databases and performed forward and backward citation tracking of all included studies. Search results were screened and reviewed in duplicate. Risk of bias (RoB) was assessed in duplicate according to the COSMOS-E guidance. Data was extracted by ABM and independently validated. The results were synthesised by country, RoB, and model adjustments, and visualised using harvest plots.ResultsTwenty-nine studies across five countries were included, with 75% of included studies conducted in the Unites States. For-profit ownership was not consistently associated with a higher probability of a COVID-19 outbreak. However, there was compelling evidence of worse COVID-19 outcomes following an outbreak, with for-profit care homes having higher rates of accumulative infections and deaths. For-profit providers were also associated with shortages in PPE, which may have contributed to the higher incidence of infections and deaths in the early stages of the pandemic. Chain affiliation was often correlated with an increased risk of outbreak but was usually not reported to be associated with higher rates of deaths and infections.ConclusionFor-profit ownership was a consistent risk factor for higher cumulative COVID-19 infections and deaths in the first wave of the pandemic. Thus, ownership and the characteristics associated with FP care home providers may present key regulatable factors that can be addressed to improve health outcomes in vulnerable populations and reduce health disparities. This review will be updated as new research becomes published, which may change the conclusion of our synthesis.


Author(s):  
Maggie Stobbart-Rowlands ◽  
Mandy Thorn

This chapter describes the care home setting, aspects that have an impact on use of Advance care planning (ACP) in care homes, examples of challenges and best practice, use of ACP in the GSF Care Homes Training Programme, ACP with people with dementia, and culture change. Many people in care homes are in the last year/s of life, and ACP discussions are especially important for them to ensure that the care they receive is in line with what they want. Care homes lead the way in their extensive use of ACP discussions. ACP is more routinely used by care home staff than is often recognized, and can be easier to introduce in care homes than in other settings. Key challenges include poor means of communication due to dementia/cognitive impairment or physical deterioration, and how staff address the expectations of families, and ensure any interventions are in the best interests of the person.


2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (S1) ◽  
pp. 104-105
Author(s):  
Charlene Ronquillo ◽  
Ken Stein

Introduction:Deprescribing – a process for reducing or stopping drugs when the balance of benefits and harms may no longer be in a person's interests – is a key aspect of managing multimorbidity and polypharmcacy in older people. Several deprescribing interventions have been developed (e.g. in Australia and Canada), although significant challenges for successful implementation remain. Through key stakeholder consultation in the care home setting in South West England, we take the initial steps to develop a context-informed deprescribing approach. Engaging stakeholders from the outset gains insight into acceptability, feasibility, and relevance of deprescribing interventions developed elsewhere informing co-production of an effective, implementable approach.Methods:Consultation workshops were held with two groups of stakeholders: (i) care home residents and their families; (ii) care home staff and health care professionals (general practitioners, medical specialists, pharmacists, nurses, allied health professionals). Focus groups were held with each group separately to understand perspectives on: deprescribing in general; contextual considerations; and, perspectives on deprescribing interventions developed in other countries. A combined focus group then considered components of a deprescribing intervention for care homes. Qualitative data were audio recorded, transcribed, and thematically coded.Results:Participants described the nature of local relationships, dynamics, structures, and resources, as important considerations in the development of a deprescribing approach in care homes. Perspectives and concerns around deprescribing among the stakeholder groups varied, although the importance of eliciting local stakeholder feedback in the early stages of developing a deprescribing intervention was a common thread.Conclusions:Early engagement and co-production are crucial in developing an approach to deprescribing in care homes. The combination of stakeholder involvement and qualitative research is important for developing an effective, contextually relevant intervention as the balance between interests can be incorporated into the approach. Leveraging the experience in other countries is a novel and valuable step.


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