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Bastholm-Rahmner P, Bergqvist M, Modig K, Gustafsson LL, Schmidt-Mende K. Homecare workers - an untapped resource in preventing emergency department visits among older individuals? A qualitative interview study from Sweden. BMC Geriatr 2024; 24:350. [PMID: 38637752 PMCID: PMC11027288 DOI: 10.1186/s12877-024-04906-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2023] [Accepted: 03/20/2024] [Indexed: 04/20/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Older individuals with functional decline and homecare are frequent visitors to emergency departments (ED). Homecare workers (HCWs) interact regularly with their clients and may play a crucial role in their well-being. Therefore, this study explores if and how HCWs perceive they may contribute to the prevention of ED visits among their clients. METHODS In this qualitative study, 12 semi-structured interviews were conducted with HCWs from Sweden between July and November 2022. Inductive thematic analysis was used to identify barriers and facilitators to prevent ED visits in older home-dwelling individuals. RESULTS HCWs want to actively contribute to the prevention of ED visits among clients but observe many barriers that hinder them from doing so. Barriers refer to care organisation such as availability to primary care staff and information transfer; perceived attitudes towards HCWs as co-workers; and client-related factors. Participants suggest that improved communication and collaboration with primary care and discharge information from the ED to homecare services could overcome barriers. Furthermore, they ask for support and geriatric education from primary care nurses which may result in increased respect towards them as competent staff members. CONCLUSIONS HCWs feel that they have an important role in the health management of older individuals living at home. Still, they feel as an untapped resource in the prevention of ED visits. They deem that improved coordination and communication between primary care, ED, and homecare organisations as well as proactive care would enable them to add significantly to the prevention of ED visits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pia Bastholm-Rahmner
- Academic Primary Healthcare Center, Region Stockholm, Sweden.
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Karolinska Institutet, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
| | - Monica Bergqvist
- Academic Primary Healthcare Center, Region Stockholm, Sweden
- Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Division of Nursing, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Karin Modig
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Unit of Epidemiology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Lars L Gustafsson
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Karolinska Institutet, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Katharina Schmidt-Mende
- Academic Primary Healthcare Center, Region Stockholm, Sweden
- Department of Neurobiology and Care Sciences and Society, Division of Family Medicine and Primary Care, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
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Schmidt-Mende K, Arvinge C, Cioffi G, Gustafsson LL, Modig K, Meyer AC. Profiling chronic diseases and hospitalizations in older home care recipients: a nationwide cohort study in Sweden. BMC Geriatr 2024; 24:312. [PMID: 38570768 PMCID: PMC10993481 DOI: 10.1186/s12877-024-04796-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2023] [Accepted: 02/08/2024] [Indexed: 04/05/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Older adults with home care (HC) often have complex disease patterns and use healthcare extensively. Increased understanding is necessary to tailor their care. To our knowledge, this is the first study to describe patterns of morbidity and hospitalizations among community-dwelling older HC recipients nationwide and in subgroups defined by age, sex, and amount of HC, and to compare patterns to community-dwelling older adults without HC. METHODS Nationwide register-based cohort study in community-dwelling adults aged 70 and older receiving publicly funded HC in Sweden on January 1st 2019 and an age-and-sex matched comparison group ("non-HC recipients"). Using register data from inpatient and specialized outpatient care, we assessed the prevalence of sixty chronic diseases, frailty, multimorbidity and hospitalizations, calculated incidence rates and explored reasons for hospitalizations during two years of follow-up. RESULTS We identified 138,113 HC recipients (mean age 85, 66% women, 57% ≥5 chronic diseases). The most prevalent diseases were hypertension (55%) and eye conditions (48%). Compared to non-HC recipients, HC recipients had a higher prevalence of almost all diseases, with an overrepresentation of neurological (26.1 vs. 9.5%) disease and dementia (9.3 vs. 1.5%). 61% of HC recipients were hospitalized at least once during two years, which was 1.6 times as often as non-HC recipients. One third of HC recipients´ hospitalizations (37.4%) were due to injuries, infections, and heart failure. Hospitalizations for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, confusion, infections, and breathing difficulties were 3-5 times higher among HC recipients compared to non-HC recipients. CONCLUSION Compared to non-HC recipients, HC recipients more often live alone, have higher degrees of frailty, suffer from more chronic diseases, especially neurological disease, and are hospitalized almost twice as often. The results provide a thorough description of HC recipients, which might be useful for targeted healthcare interventions including closer collaboration between primary care, neurologists, and rehabilitation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Schmidt-Mende
- Academic Primary Health Care Centre, Region Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden.
- Department of Neurobiology and Care Sciences and Society, Division of Family Medicine and Primary Care, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, Sweden.
| | - Cecilia Arvinge
- Torsvik Primary Health Care Centre, Region Stockholm, Lidingö, Sweden
| | - Giovanni Cioffi
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Unit of Epidemiology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Lars Lennart Gustafsson
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, Sweden
| | - Karin Modig
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Unit of Epidemiology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Anna Carina Meyer
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Unit of Epidemiology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
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Rönneikkö J, Huhtala H, Finne-Soveri H, Valvanne J, Jämsen E. The role of geriatric syndromes in predicting unplanned hospitalizations: a population-based study using Minimum Data Set for Home Care. BMC Geriatr 2023; 23:696. [PMID: 37884888 PMCID: PMC10605458 DOI: 10.1186/s12877-023-04408-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2022] [Accepted: 10/15/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The predictive accuracies of screening instruments for identifying home-dwelling old people at risk of hospitalization have ranged from poor to moderate, particularly among the oldest persons. This study aimed to identify variables that could improve the accuracy of a Minimum Data Set for Home Care (MDS-HC) based algorithm, the Detection of Indicators and Vulnerabilities for Emergency Room Trips (DIVERT) Scale, in classifying home care clients' risk for unplanned hospitalization. METHODS In this register-based retrospective study, factors associated with hospitalization among home care clients aged ≥ 80 years in the City of Tampere, Finland, were analyzed by linking MDS-HC assessments with hospital discharge records. MDS-HC determinants associated with hospitalization within 180 days after the assessment were analyzed for clients at low (DIVERT 1), moderate (DIVERT 2-3) and high (DIVERT 4-6) risk of hospitalization. Then, two new variables were selected to supplement the DIVERT algorithm. Finally, area under curve (AUC) values of the original and modified DIVERT scales were determined using the data of MDS-HC assessments of all home care clients in the City of Tampere to examine if addition of the variables related to the oldest age groups improved the accuracy of DIVERT. RESULTS Of home care clients aged ≥ 80 years, 1,291 (65.4%) were hospitalized at least once during the two-year study period. Unplanned hospitalization occurred following 15.9%, 22.8%, and 33.9% MDS-HC assessments with DIVERT group 1, 2-3 and 4-6, respectively. Infectious diseases were the most common diagnosis within each DIVERT groups. Many MDS-HC variables not included in the DIVERT algorithm were associated with hospitalization, including e.g. poor self-rated health and old fracture (other than hip fracture) (p 0.001) in DIVERT 1; impaired cognition and decision-making, urinary incontinence, unstable walking and fear of falling (p < 0.001) in DIVERT 2-3; and urinary incontinence, poor self-rated health (p < 0.001), and decreased social interaction (p 0.001) in DIVERT 4-6. Adding impaired cognition and urinary incontinence to the DIVERT algorithm improved sensitivity but not accuracy (AUC 0.64 (95% CI 0.62-0.65) vs. 0.62 (0.60-0.64) of the original DIVERT). More admissions occurred among the clients with higher scores in the modified than in the original DIVERT scale. CONCLUSIONS Certain geriatric syndromes and diagnosis groups were associated with unplanned hospitalization among home care clients at low or moderate risk level of hospitalization. However, the predictive accuracy of the DIVERT could not be improved. In a complex clinical context of home care clients, more important than existence of a set of risk factors related to an algorithm may be the various individual combinations of risk factors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jukka Rönneikkö
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland.
| | - Heini Huhtala
- Faculty of Social Sciences, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
| | | | - Jaakko Valvanne
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology and Gerontology Research Center (GEREC), Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
| | - Esa Jämsen
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- Department of Geriatrics, Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
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Smith KJ, Victor C. The Association of Loneliness With Health and Social Care Utilization in Older Adults in the General Population: A Systematic Review. THE GERONTOLOGIST 2022; 62:e578-e596. [PMID: 34875042 DOI: 10.1093/geront/gnab177] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Loneliness is proposed to be linked with increased service use. This review examined the association of loneliness and health and social care utilization (HSCU) in older adults from the general population. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Four databases were screened for studies that examined the association of loneliness (predictor) with HSCU (outcome) in older adults (defined as the majority of sample 60 or older). Study quality was assessed with the National Institutes for Health scale for observational cohorts and cross-sectional studies. RESULTS We identified 32 studies, of which 9 prospective studies were evaluated as being good or good-fair quality. Two good-fair quality studies found that loneliness at baseline was associated with subsequent admission to a residential care home. There was emerging evidence that loneliness was associated with emergency department use (n = 1) and cardiovascular disease-specific hospitalization (n = 1). Once adjusted for confounders, the highest quality studies found no association of baseline loneliness with physician utilization, outpatient service utilization, skilled nursing facility use, and planned or unplanned hospital admissions. The remaining studies were cross-sectional, or of fair to poor quality, and inadequate to reliably determine whether loneliness was associated with a subsequent change in HSCU. DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS There was heterogeneity in study design, measurement, and study quality. This generated an inconsistent evidence base where we cannot determine clear inferences about the relationship between loneliness and HSCU. Only one consistent finding was observed between 2 good-fair quality studies regarding care home admission. To determine clinical implications and make reliable inferences, additional good quality longitudinal research is needed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kimberley J Smith
- School of Psychology, Faculty of Health and Medicine, University of Surrey, Guildford, UK
| | - Christina Victor
- Department of Health Sciences, Brunel University London, Uxbridge, UK
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Home care patients’ experiences from living with polypharmacy - a qualitative interview study. BJGP Open 2022; 6:BJGPO.2021.0181. [PMID: 35135816 PMCID: PMC9447318 DOI: 10.3399/bjgpo.2021.0181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2021] [Accepted: 11/30/2021] [Indexed: 10/31/2022] Open
Abstract
BackgroundPatients with home care (HC) are frail and multi-diseased older persons who are often treated with many medicines. Their perspectives on polypharmacy have previously been sparsely explored.AimTo investigate these patients’ experiences and perceptions regarding polypharmacy.Design & settingSemi-structured interviews with seventeen patients with HC in Stockholm, Sweden. The informants’ median age was 83,5 years (range 74–97 years) and the median number of prescribed medicines was 11 (range 5-30).MethodThe interview questions were open and aimed to encourage informants to speak freely about their personal experiences of living with polypharmacy. Data was analysed using an inductive thematic analysis.ResultsTwo themes were identified: 1) Experiences from daily life with polypharmacy, and 2) Dependency on the relationship to healthcare professionals. The first theme contains the main finding which was the diversity in how older persons experienced polypharmacy and how they coped with polypharmacy in everyday life. While some were satisfied despite having multiple medicines, others experienced such psychological unease due to polypharmacy that it led to reduced quality of life. The second theme reflects the importance of the relationship between the older person and healthcare professionals for medicine-related ideas and attitudes.ConclusionsThe individual variation in experiences regarding polypharmacy points to the value of interprofessional teamwork with the patient as an active partner. Therefore, healthcare professionals need to adapt a more person-centred approach where the patient’s perspectives are respected and considered in medicine-related decision-making.
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Inoue Y, Nishi K, Mayumi T, Sasaki J. Factors in Avoidable Emergency Visits for Ambulatory Care-sensitive Conditions among Older Patients Receiving Home Care in Japan: A Retrospective Study. Intern Med 2022; 61:177-183. [PMID: 35034933 PMCID: PMC8851167 DOI: 10.2169/internalmedicine.7136-21] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Objective Older adults have many health conditions that do not require hospitalization, such as cognitive decline and progression of frailty, so it is necessary to prevent avoidable emergency visits for ambulatory care-sensitive conditions (ACSCs) in this population. We therefore examine Freund's classification of reasons for hospitalization owing to ACSCs to identify factors involved in elderly patients visiting emergency departments in Japan. Methods This retrospective case-control study included patients who received emergency transport for medical treatment at Yushoukai Home Care Clinic Shinagawa in Japan between January 1, 2016, and April 30, 2019. We examined patients' medical records and categorized the reasons for emergency visit by ambulance in accordance with Freund's categories (physician related level, medical causes, patient level, and social level). In addition, we classified and compared patients who lived at home (Group A) with those living in a care facility for older adults (Group B). Results A total of 365 patients visited the emergency department (298 in Group A and 67 in Group B). Among these, we determined that emergency visits were potentially avoidable in 135 patients from Group A and 28 from Group B. The patient and social level categories accounted for 81% of potentially avoidable emergency visits. Confirmed advanced care planning (ACP) was significantly associated with avoidable emergency visit by ambulance in multivariate analyses. Conclusion To prevent emergency visits for ACSCs among older people, ACP should be encouraged.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoshie Inoue
- Yushoukai Medical Corporation Association, Yushoukai Home Care Clinic Shinagawa, Japan
| | - Kazuo Nishi
- Yushoukai Medical Corporation Association, Yushoukai Home Care Clinic Shinagawa, Japan
| | - Toshihiko Mayumi
- Department of Emergency Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Japan
| | - Jun Sasaki
- Yushoukai Medical Corporation Association, Japan
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van Wijngaarden E, Rich DQ, Zhang W, Thurston SW, Lin S, Croft DP, Squizzato S, Masiol M, Hopke PK. Neurodegenerative hospital admissions and long-term exposure to ambient fine particle air pollution. Ann Epidemiol 2020; 54:79-86.e4. [PMID: 33010415 DOI: 10.1016/j.annepidem.2020.09.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2020] [Revised: 09/15/2020] [Accepted: 09/21/2020] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE Long-term exposure to ambient fine particle (PM2.5) concentrations has been associated with an increased rate or risk of neurodegenerative conditions, but individual PM sources have not been previously examined in relation to neurodegenerative diseases. METHODS Using the Statewide Planning and Research Cooperative System database, we studied 63,287 hospital admissions with a primary diagnosis of either Alzheimer's disease, dementia, or Parkinson's disease for New York State residents living within 15 miles from six PM2.5 monitoring sites. In addition to PM2.5 concentrations, we studied seven specific PM2.5 sources: secondary sulfate, secondary nitrate, biomass burning, diesel, spark-ignition emissions, pyrolyzed organic rich, and road dust. We estimated the rate of neurodegenerative hospital admissions associated with increased concentration of PM2.5 and individual PM2.5 sources average concentrations in the previous 0-29, 0-179, and 0-364 days. RESULTS Increases in ambient PM2.5 concentrations were not consistently associated with increased hospital admissions rates. Increased source-specific PM2.5 concentrations were associated with both increased (e.g., secondary sulfates and diesel emissions) and decreased rates (e.g., secondary nitrate and spark-ignition vehicular emissions) of neurodegenerative admissions. CONCLUSIONS We did not observe clear associations between overall ambient PM2.5 concentrations or source-apportioned ambient PM2.5 contributions and rates of neurologic disease hospitalizations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edwin van Wijngaarden
- Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY; Department of Environmental Medicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY.
| | - David Q Rich
- Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY; Department of Environmental Medicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY; Department of Medicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY
| | - Wangjian Zhang
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health, State University of New York at Albany, Albany
| | - Sally W Thurston
- Department of Biostatistics and Computational Biology, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY
| | - Shao Lin
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health, State University of New York at Albany, Albany
| | - Daniel P Croft
- Department of Medicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY
| | - Stefania Squizzato
- Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY
| | - Mauro Masiol
- Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY; Dipartimento di Scienze Ambientali, Informatica e Statistica, Università Ca' Foscari Venezia, Venice, Italy
| | - Philip K Hopke
- Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY; Center for Air Resources Engineering and Science, Clarkson University, Potsdam, NY
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Huang HH, Chang JCY, Tseng CC, Yang YJ, Fan JS, Chen YC, Peng LN, Yen DHT. Comprehensive geriatric assessment in the emergency department for the prediction of readmission among older patients: A 3-month follow-up study. Arch Gerontol Geriatr 2020; 92:104255. [PMID: 32966944 DOI: 10.1016/j.archger.2020.104255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2020] [Revised: 09/07/2020] [Accepted: 09/08/2020] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Older people present to the emergency department (ED) with distinct patterns and emergency care needs. This study aimed to use comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) surveying the patterns of ED visits among older patients and determine frailty associated with the risk of revisits/readmission. METHODS This prospective study screened 2270 patients aged ≥75 years in the ED from August 2018 to February 2019. All patients underwent CGA. A 3-months follow-up was conducted to observe the hospital courses of admission and revisit/readmission. RESULTS A total of 270 older patients were enrolled. The independent predictors of admission at initial ED visit were the risk of nutritional deficit and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL). In the admission group, the independent predictors of revisit/readmission were a fall in the past year and mobility difficulties. In the discharge group, the independent predictors of revisit/readmission were frailty and insomnia. Regardless if older patients were either admitted or discharged at the initial ED visit, the independent predictor of revisit/readmission for older patients was frailty. CONCLUSION Our study showed that frailty was the only independent predictor for revisit/readmission after ED discharge during the 3-month follow up. For ED physicians, malnutrition and IADL were independent predictors in recognizing whether the older patient should be admitted to the hospital. For discharged older ED patients, frailty was the independent predictor for the integration of community services for older patients to decrease the rate of revisit/readmission in 3 months.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hsien-Hao Huang
- Department of Emergency Medicine, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; Institute of Emergency and Critical Medicine, National Yang-Ming University School of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan; Faculty of Medicine, National Yang-Ming University School of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Julia Chia-Yu Chang
- Department of Emergency Medicine, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; Institute of Emergency and Critical Medicine, National Yang-Ming University School of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Chien-Chien Tseng
- Department of Emergency Medicine, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Yu-Jie Yang
- Department of Emergency Medicine, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Ju-Sing Fan
- Department of Emergency Medicine, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; Institute of Emergency and Critical Medicine, National Yang-Ming University School of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan; Faculty of Medicine, National Yang-Ming University School of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Yen-Chia Chen
- Department of Emergency Medicine, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; Faculty of Medicine, National Yang-Ming University School of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Li-Ning Peng
- Aging and Health Research Center, National Yang Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan; Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - David Hung-Tsang Yen
- Department of Emergency Medicine, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; Institute of Emergency and Critical Medicine, National Yang-Ming University School of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan; Faculty of Medicine, National Yang-Ming University School of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Emergency Medicine, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan.
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