scholarly journals Nursing Home’s Measures during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Critical Reflection

Author(s):  
Hongli Sam Goh ◽  
Vivian Tan ◽  
Chen-Na Lee ◽  
Hui Zhang ◽  
M Kamala Devi

This study examined the pandemic measures taken by nursing leaders to cope with COVID-19 at a nursing home in Singapore. The pandemic has affected over 215 countries, sparking a series of containment and pandemic measures by governments and healthcare organizations worldwide. Long-term care facilities are especially vulnerable to the pandemic, but little has been reported about the nursing homes’ measures in handling the pandemic. The present study used Morley’s (2014) three-stage critical reflection method to review meeting minutes, organizational emails, and government advisories on the COVID-19 pandemic measures undertaken by nursing leaders at a nursing home in Singapore between January and June 2020. The pandemic measures were broadly classified into four groups: (1) infection surveillance and containment measures; (2) ensuring continuity in clinical care and operational support; (3) resource and administrative coordination; and (4) staff training and development. Nurses have played a vital role in the fight against COVID-19 by ensuring continuity in patient care and demonstrating clinical leadership in pandemic efforts. This study proposes a useful nursing pandemic structure that outlines a set of functions and measures required for handling a pandemic and that can be applied to various medical emergencies and contingencies.

Long-term care for older adults is highly affect by the COVID-19 outbreak. The objective of this rapid review is to understand what we can learn from previous crises or disasters worldwide to optimize the care for older adults in long term care facilities during the outbreak of COVID-19. We searched five electronic databases to identify potentially relevant articles. In total, 23 articles were included in this study. Based on the articles, it appeared that nursing homes benefit from preparing for the situation as best as they can. For instance, by having proper protocols and clear division of tasks and collaboration within the organization. In addition, it is helpful for nursing homes to collaborate closely with other healthcare organizations, general practitioners, informal caregivers and local authorities. It is recommended that nursing homes pay attention to capacity and employability of staff and that they support or relieve staff where possible. With regard to care for the older adults, it is important that staff tries to find a new daily routine in the care for residents as soon as possible. Some practical tips were found on how to communicate with people who have dementia. Furthermore, behavior of people with dementia may change during a crisis. We found tips for staff how to respond and act upon behavior change. After the COVID-19 outbreak, aftercare for staff, residents, and informal caregivers is essential to timely detect psychosocial problems. The consideration between, on the one hand, acute safety and risk reduction (e.g. by closing residential care facilities and isolating residents), and on the other hand, the psychosocial consequences for residents and staff, were discussed in case of other disasters. Furthermore, the search of how to provide good (palliative) care and to maintain quality of life for older adults who suffer from COVID-19 is also of concern to nursing home organizations. In the included articles, the perspective of older adults, informal caregivers and staff is often lacking. Especially the experiences of older adults, informal caregivers, and nursing home staff with the care for older adults in the current situation, are important in formulating lessons about how to act before, during and after the coronacrisis. This may further enhance person-centered care, even in times of crisis. Therefore, we recommend to study these experiences in future research.


1997 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas G. Castle

Long-term care institutions have emerged as dominant sites of death for the elderly. However, studies of this trend have primarily examined nursing homes. The purpose of this research is to determine demographic, functional, disease, and facility predictors and/or correlates of death for the elderly residing in board and care facilities. Twelve factors are found to be significant: proportion of residents older than sixty-five years of age, proportion of residents who are chair- or bed-fast, proportion of residents with HIV, bed size, ownership, chain membership, affiliation with a nursing home, number of health services provided other than by the facility, the number of social services provided other than by the facility, the number of social services provided by the facility, and visits by Ombudsmen. These are discussed and comparisons with similar studies in nursing homes are made.


Author(s):  
Milta O. Little ◽  
Angela M. Sanford ◽  
Theodore K. Malmstrom ◽  
Christina Traber ◽  
John E. Morley

Author(s):  
Maria T Brown ◽  
Miriam Mutambudzi

Abstract Objectives Mental illness and cognitive functioning may be independently associated with nursing home use. We investigated the strength of the association between baseline (1998) psychiatric history, 8-year cognitive function trajectories, and prospective incidence of nursing home use over a 10-year period while accounting for relevant covariates in U.S. adults aged 65 and older. We hypothesized that self-reported baseline history of psychiatric, emotional, or nervous problems would be associated with a greater risk of nursing home use and that cognition trajectories with the greatest decline would be associated with a subsequent higher risk of nursing home use. Methods We used 8 waves (1998–2016) of Health and Retirement Study data for adults aged 65 years and older. Latent class mixture modeling identified 4 distinct cognitive function trajectory classes (1998–2006): low-declining, medium-declining, medium-stable, and high-declining. Participants from the 1998 wave (N = 5,628) were classified into these 4 classes. Competing risks regression analysis modeled the subhazard ratio of nursing home use between 2006 and 2016 as a function of baseline psychiatric history and cognitive function trajectories. Results Psychiatric history was independently associated with greater risk of nursing home use (subhazard ratio [SHR] 1.26, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.06–1.51, p < .01), net the effects of life course variables. Furthermore, “low-declining” (SHR 2.255, 95% CI 1.70–2.99, p < .001) and “medium-declining” (2.103, 95% CI 1.69–2.61, p < .001) trajectories predicted increased risk of nursing home use. Discussion Evidence of these associations can be used to educate policymakers and providers about the need for appropriate psychiatric training for staff in community-based and residential long-term care programs.


Author(s):  
Diane Meyer ◽  
Elena K. Martin ◽  
Syra Madad ◽  
Priya Dhagat ◽  
Jennifer B. Nuzzo

Abstract Objective: Candida auris infections continue to occur across the United States and abroad, and healthcare facilities that care for vulnerable populations must improve their readiness to respond to this emerging organism. We aimed to identify and better understand challenges faced and lessons learned by those healthcare facilities who have experienced C. auris cases and outbreaks to better prepare those who have yet to experience or respond to this pathogen. Design: Semi-structured qualitative interviews. Setting: Health departments, long-term care facilities, acute-care hospitals, and healthcare organizations in New York, Illinois, and California. Participants: Infectious disease physicians and nurses, clinical and environmental services, hospital leadership, hospital epidemiology, infection preventionists, emergency management, and laboratory scientists who had experiences either preparing for or responding to C. auris cases or outbreaks. Methods: In total, 25 interviews were conducted with 84 participants. Interviews were coded using NVivo qualitative coding software by 2 separate researchers. Emergent themes were then iteratively discussed among the research team. Results: Key themes included surveillance and laboratory capacity, inter- and intrafacility communication, infection prevention and control, environmental cleaning and disinfection, clinical management of cases, and media concerns and stigma. Conclusions: Many of the operational challenges noted in this research are not unique to C. auris, and the ways in which we address future outbreaks should be informed by previous experiences and lessons learned, including the recent outbreaks of C. auris in the United States.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 273-274
Author(s):  
Shinyi Wu ◽  
Katherine Foster ◽  
Magaly Ramirez ◽  
Haomiao Jin ◽  
Elizabeth Joe

Abstract Family caregivers need access to information, education, and support for taking care of individuals with Alzheimer’s disease and other dementia (ADRD). As YouTube is increasingly being used for sharing health information, videos regarding the disease and caregiving are becoming an important source of information to support family ADRD caregivers. This study aimed to assess the types and quality of information available on YouTube videos related to ADRD caregiving. A framework categorizing information needs of family ADRD caregivers was developed through a qualitative study with caregivers (N=21) and with healthcare and community stakeholders (N=6). The framework was used to conduct content analysis of YouTube videos. Nineteen categories of information needs were identified, including information about ADRD, healthcare services and treatment, available community resources, caregiving skills, and short- and long-term care. YouTube videos that met the keywords, language, and view selection criteria were evaluated by two coders on a developed rating scale to measure their relevance and helpfulness. A neurologist verified the ratings in 10% of the coded videos for quality assurance. There were 48 English and 23 Spanish videos met the selection criteria. More English (89.6%) than Spanish (56.5%) videos provided tips on handling specific ADRD symptoms. The majority categories of information needs (15 of the 19) were absent in most videos (87.0%, 89.6%). Many of the most watched videos were not rated as helpful. Community-based providers and healthcare organizations are encouraged to make high quality needed information in commonly accessed videos sharing service to support ADRD family caregivers.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Julian Hirt ◽  
Melanie Karrer ◽  
Laura Adlbrecht ◽  
Susi Saxer ◽  
Adelheid Zeller

Abstract Background To support the implementation of nurse-led interventions in long-term dementia care, in-depth knowledge of specific supporting factors and barriers is required. Conditions and structures of caring for people with dementia differ widely, depending on the country and the care context. Our study aimed to describe the experiences and opinions of nursing experts and managers with regard to facilitators and barriers to the implementation of nurse-led interventions in long-term dementia care. Methods We conducted a qualitative descriptive study using individual interviews based on qualitative vignettes as a useful stimulus to generate narrations allowing to study peoples’ perceptions and beliefs. The study took place in nursing homes in the German-speaking part of Switzerland and in the Principality of Liechtenstein using purposive sampling. We intended to conduct the interviews face-to-face in a quiet room according to the participant’s choice. However, due to the lockdown of nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic in spring 2020, we performed interviews face-to-face and by video. We analysed data thematically following Braun and Clarke to achieve a detailed, nuanced description. To verify our interpretation and to ensure congruence with participants’ perspectives, we conducted member checks. The Standards for Reporting Qualitative Research (SRQR) served to structure our manuscript. Results Six dyads of nursing home managers and nursing experts from six nursing homes took part in our study (n = 12). Our thematic analysis yielded seven themes reflecting facilitators and barriers to implementing nurse-led interventions in long-term dementia care: «A common attitude and cohesion within the organization», «Commitment on several levels», «A needs-oriented implementation», «The effect and the public perception of the intervention», «A structured and guided implementation process», «Supporting knowledge and competencies», as well as «Resources for implementing the intervention». Conclusions To support the implementation of nurse-led interventions in long-term dementia care, active commitment-building seems essential. It is necessary that the value of the intervention is perceptible.Commitment-building is the precondition to reach the persons involved, such as nursing home managers, nursing staff, residents and relatives. Furthermore, nurses should precisely inform about the intervention. It is necessary that the value of the intervention is perceptible. In addition, nurses should adjust the interventions to the situational needs of people with dementia, thus. Therefore, it is important to support dementia-specific competencies in long-term care. Findings indicate that the barrier is determined by the intervention and its implementation – and not by the behaviour of the person with dementia.


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