scholarly journals The Expanding Scope, Inclusivity, and Integration of Music in Healthcare: Recent Developments, Research Illustration, and Future Direction

Healthcare ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 99
Author(s):  
Bev Foster ◽  
Sarah Pearson ◽  
Aimee Berends ◽  
Chelsea Mackinnon

This paper is in three sections. Section One presents a historical overview of international initiatives that have expanded the role of music in healthcare, from the initial formalization of music therapy to its more research-based rehabilitation focus to recent decades that have seen an increasing role for professional and community musicians, paraprofessional music services, music-oriented service organizations, and a very large increase in medical funding for music effects. “Music Care” is a particular and comprehensive concept promoted by the Room 217 Foundation in Canada, featuring an inclusive and integrated approach to optimizing the use of music in healthcare settings. It is part of an expanding landscape of global practices and policies where music is used to address specific issues of care. Section Two is provided as an illustration of the growing scope of the concept of using music in healthcare. It reports on a multi-year project that engaged 24 long-term care homes in conducting individualized action research projects using the fundamental approach of “Music Care”, empowering all caregivers, formal and informal, musicians and non-musicians, to use music to improve quality of life and care. Section Two presents only high-level results of the study focused on using music care to reduce resident isolation and loneliness. Section Three draws on the results from the study reported in Section Two to inform the potential and path to the future of music optimization in any healthcare setting.

2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (S1) ◽  
pp. s145-s146
Author(s):  
Kelly Walblay ◽  
Tristan McPherson ◽  
Elissa Roop ◽  
David Soglin ◽  
Ann Valley ◽  
...  

Background:Candida auris and carbapenemase-producing organisms (CPO) are multidrug-resistant organisms that can colonize people for prolonged periods and can cause invasive infections and spread in healthcare settings, particularly in high-acuity long-term care facilities. Point-prevalence surveys (PPSs) conducted in long-term acute-care hospitals in the Chicago region identified median prevalence of colonization to be 31% for C. auris and 24% for CPO. Prevalence of C. auris colonization has not been described in pediatric populations in the United States, and limited data exist on CPO colonization in children outside intensive care units. The Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) conducted a PPS to assess C. auris and CPO colonization in a pediatric hospital serving high-acuity patients with extended lengths of stay (LOS). Methods: CDPH conducted a PPS in August 2019 in a pediatric hospital with extended LOS to screen for C. auris and CPO colonization. Medical devices (ie, gastrostomy tubes, tracheostomies, mechanical ventilators, and central venous catheters [CVC]) and LOS were documented. Screening specimens consisted of composite bilateral axillae and groin swabs for C. auris and rectal swabs for CPO testing. The Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene tested all specimens. Real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays were used to detect C. auris DNA and carbapenemase genes: blaKPC, blaNDM, blaVIM, blaOXA-48, and blaIMP (Xpert Carba-R Assay, Cepheid, Sunnyvale, CA). All axillae and groin swabs were processed by PCR and culture to identify C. auris. For CPO, culture was only performed on PCR-positive specimens. Results: Of the 29 patients hospitalized, 26 (90%) had gastrostomy tubes, 24 (83%) had tracheostomies, 20 (69%) required mechanical ventilation, and 3 (10%) had CVCs. Also, 25 (86%) were screened for C. auris and CPO; 4 (14%) lacked parental consent and were not swabbed. Two rectal specimens were unsatisfactory, producing invalid CPO test results. Median LOS was 35 days (range, 1–300 days). No patients were positive for C. auris. From CPO screening, blaOXA-48 was detected in 1 patient sample, yielding a CPO prevalence of 3.4% (1 of 29). No organism was recovered from the blaOXA-48 positive specimen. Conclusions: This is the first documented screening of C. auris colonization in a pediatric hospital with extended LOS. Despite a high prevalence of C. auris and CPOs in adult healthcare settings of similar acuity in the region, C. auris was not identified and CPOs were rare at this pediatric facility. Additional evaluations in pediatric hospitals should be conducted to further understand C. auris and CPO prevalence in this population.Funding: NoneDisclosures: None


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 111-112
Author(s):  
Rajiv Nagaich ◽  
Carol Redfield ◽  
Ben Harvill

Abstract Ten thousand turn 65 daily. Majority look forward to retiring in the beginning and then become afraid of outcomes they often hear about- dealing with institutional care, becoming a burden, or running out of money. This is not because retirees do not plan, but despite of having planned their entire life for retirement. Many employers provide financial retirement planning such as a 401K plan. Individuals have relied on employee benefit plans to ready themselves, yet few are “very confident” about it. Two-thirds of retirees say their most recent employers did “nothing” to help them transition into retirement; 16% are “not sure” what their employers did. Many may be overlooking important factors in their strategies. Among retirees who currently have a retirement strategy, 85% have factored Social Security and Medicare benefits into their strategy. Most have included on-going living expenses (79%), total savings and income needs (57%) into their plan. Fewer than half have considered other critical factors (e.g., investment returns, ongoing healthcare costs, inflation, long-term care needs, tax planning, etc.). Only 9% have contingency plans for retiring sooner than expected and/or savings shortfalls. The truth is that education offered by employers tends to be traditional planning advice, which may not be enough to address the concerns retirees will have in retirement. To this, we introduce a multi-disciplinary LifePlanning Framework which takes a wholistic, integrated approach in addressing the many complex issues of retirement found in health, housing, finance, legal, and family. Our results may impact future practice, research, and policy.


2016 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 554-556
Author(s):  
Jason Lesandrini ◽  
Carol O’Connell

Ethical issues in long-term care settings, although having received attention in the literature, have not in our opinion received the appropriate level they require. Thus, we applaud the Cambridge Quarterly for publishing this case. We can attest to the significance of ethical issues arising in long-term care facilities, as Mr. Hope’s case is all too familiar to those practicing in these settings. What is unique about this case is that an actual ethics consult was made in a long-term care setting. We have seen very little in the published literature on the use of ethics structures in long-term care populations. Our experience is that these healthcare settings are ripe for ethical concerns and that providers, patients, families, and staff need/desire ethics resources to actively and preventively address ethical concerns. The popular press has begun to recognize the ethical issues involved in long-term care settings and the need for ethics structures. Recently, in California a nurse refused to initiate CPR for an elderly patient in a senior residence. In that case, the nurse was quoted as saying that the facility had a policy that nurses were not to start CPR for elderly patients.1 Although this case is not exactly the same as that of Mr. Hope, it highlights the need for developing robust ethics program infrastructures in long-term care settings that work toward addressing ethical issues through policy, education, and active consultation.


2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (48) ◽  
Author(s):  
Françoise Renard ◽  
Aline Scohy ◽  
Johan Van der Heyden ◽  
Ilse Peeters ◽  
Sara Dequeker ◽  
...  

Background COVID-19-related mortality in Belgium has drawn attention for two reasons: its high level, and a good completeness in reporting of deaths. An ad hoc surveillance was established to register COVID-19 death numbers in hospitals, long-term care facilities (LTCF) and the community. Belgium adopted broad inclusion criteria for the COVID-19 death notifications, also including possible cases, resulting in a robust correlation between COVID-19 and all-cause mortality. Aim To document and assess the COVID-19 mortality surveillance in Belgium. Methods We described the content and data flows of the registration and we assessed the situation as of 21 June 2020, 103 days after the first death attributable to COVID-19 in Belgium. We calculated the participation rate, the notification delay, the percentage of error detected, and the results of additional investigations. Results The participation rate was 100% for hospitals and 83% for nursing homes. Of all deaths, 85% were recorded within 2 calendar days: 11% within the same day, 41% after 1 day and 33% after 2 days, with a quicker notification in hospitals than in LTCF. Corrections of detected errors reduced the death toll by 5%. Conclusion Belgium implemented a rather complete surveillance of COVID-19 mortality, on account of a rapid investment of the hospitals and LTCF. LTCF could build on past experience of previous surveys and surveillance activities. The adoption of an extended definition of ‘COVID-19-related deaths’ in a context of limited testing capacity has provided timely information about the severity of the epidemic.


Author(s):  
Catherine Egan ◽  
Andria Jones-Bitton ◽  
Jan Sargeant ◽  
J Scott Weese

Background: While Clostridium difficile infection is a significant concern in healthcare settings, there is increasing evidence that transmission does not solely occur in hospitals and long-term care homes. Hospital patients are regularly discharged home following or during treatment, and it is likely that many excrete spores into their household environment, posing risks of reinfection to themselves and transmission of spores to others. Hence, recommendations on household hygiene might be important for control of C. difficile. The objective of this study was to investigate the information provided by Ontario hospitals to patients who have laboratory-confirmed symptomatic C. difficile infection with respect to household hygiene advice once they are discharged from hospital. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted between January and August 2018 and included an anonymous online survey, a website scan of Ontario hospitals, and a content analysis of information provided to patients on discharge. The survey was distributed to practicing infection control professionals in Ontario hospitals through the IPAC Canada listserv. One response per hospital corporation was accepted. Results: Responses were obtained from 46/145 (32%) Ontario hospital corporations. The majority (30/46; 65%) of respondents indicated they personally believed the household environment was important or very important in the transmission of C. difficile. Almost half (22/46; 48%) of respondents reported that their hospital had a policy to provide household hygiene advice to patients when discharged home. However, analysis of 31 hospital information sheets from the website scan identified that 27/31 (88%) contained a statement that suggested there is little risk of transmission in households, and only 2/31 (6.5%) provided the specific dilution of bleach that is known to be sporicidal. Conclusion: The household hygiene advice provided by Ontario hospitals downplayed the likelihood of transmission of C. difficile spores in household environments and described a level of hygiene that is likely inadequate to prevent transmission of C. difficile spores in the home. This may contribute to recurrent infection and colonization of household contacts.


2009 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 371-383 ◽  
Author(s):  
MARK P. AULISIO ◽  
JESSICA MOORE ◽  
MAY BLANCHARD ◽  
MARCIA BAILEY ◽  
DAWN SMITH

Clinical ethics committees, with their typical threefold function of education, policy formation, and consultation, are present in nearly all U.S. hospitals today, and they are increasingly common in other healthcare settings such as long-term care and even home care. Ethics committees are at least as prevalent in Canadian hospitals as they are in U.S. hospitals, and their presence is growing in Europe, much of Asia, and Central and South America. Although ethics committees serve a variety of needs, their ultimate goal ought to be to promote ethical practices or, in other words, to engender the integration of ethics into the life of the medical center. Of the three primary functions of ethics committees, ethics consultation has historically been the most controversial and problematic, and consult services in many healthcare institutions have struggled to thrive.


PEDIATRICS ◽  
1974 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 253-256
Author(s):  
Patricia W. Hayden ◽  
David B. Shurtleff ◽  
Arline B. Broy

Of 173 patients with myelodysplasia followed in the Birth Defects Center at University Hospital between 1968 and 1972, 30 (17%) have been placed outside their natural families for temporary or long-term care. Only one has been adopted and five have been institutionalized; the remainder have been in foster home care. High level paralysis, mental retardation, and lower socioeconomic status correlate positively with placement. In this series, gender was not a contributory factor. An initial "hopeless" prognosis and/or selection for "no treatment" were decisions often made prior to referral to this center but were highly correlated to placement. Considering the multiple medical, emotional, and economic problems facing these families, relinquishment of custody should be anticipated in a significant percentage of cases. To date, placement outside the natural family has been viewed primarily as abandonment or as an emergency solution to a crisis. Long-term follow-up study of this group of children may indicate that transfer of custody can be a positive therapeutic alternative for the child and his family.


Author(s):  
A. L. Barr ◽  
E. H. Young ◽  
L. Smeeth ◽  
R. Newton ◽  
J. Seeley ◽  
...  

With the changing distribution of infectious diseases, and an increase in the burden of non-communicable diseases, low- and middle-income countries, including those in Africa, will need to expand their health care capacities to effectively respond to these epidemiological transitions. The interrelated risk factors for chronic infectious and non-communicable diseases and the need for long-term disease management, argue for combined strategies to understand their underlying causes and to design strategies for effective prevention and long-term care. Through multidisciplinary research and implementation partnerships, we advocate an integrated approach for research and healthcare for chronic diseases in Africa.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document