Are nurse`s needs assessment methods robust enough to recognise palliative care needs in people with dementia? A scoping review

BACKGROUND

People with dementia are most at risk of experiencing serious health related suffering, if they do not have a palliative care approach introduced early enough in the illness. It can be challenging for nurses to assess experienced needs of people, who are thought no longer able to self-report such as people with dementia. Assessment help to understand the care the patient and their family need promptly. It is unknown how nurses recognise holistic palliative care needs in people with dementia during routine care.

METHODS

Scoping review where EMBASE, MEDLINE, CINAHL, PsycInfo databases, and references were searched with an advanced search strategy, which was built on three concepts (nurses, dementia, and nursing assessment) using corresponding Medical Subject Headings. Data were charted in a piloted extraction form, based on the assessment domains within the nursing process followed by summarise and synthesise results narratively.

RESULTS

37 out of 2,028 qualitative and quantitative articles published between 2000 and 2021, and relating to 2600 + nurses, were identified. Pain was sole focus of assessment in 29 articles, leaving 8 articles to describe assessment of additional needs (e.g., discomfort). Nurses working in a nursing home assess pain and other needs by observing the persons with dementia behaviour during routine care. Nurses in the acute care setting are more likely to assess symptoms with standard assessment tools at admission and evaluate symptoms by observational methods. Across settings, about one third of pain assessments are supported by person-centred pain assessment tools. Assessments were mostly triggered when the person with dementia vocalised discomfort or a change in usual behaviour was observed. Nurses rely on family members and colleagues to gain more information about needs experienced by people with dementia.

CONCLUSION

There is a scarcity of evidence about techniques and methods used by nurses to assess needs other than pain experienced by people with dementia. A holistic, person-centred screening tool to aid real-time observations at the bedside and used in conversations with health care professionals and families/friends, may improve need recognition other than pain, to ensure holistic needs could then be addressed timely to improve care in people with dementia.

Orofacial pain assessment and management for patients with dementia: A meta-ethnography

Delivering dental treatment for patients with dementia can be challenging, and the complexity of treatment provision can increase as dementia progresses. Treatment at the later stages of dementia can be associated with ethical challenges and procedural risk meaning that a comprehensive patient assessment is crucial; the presence of orofacial pain is a key indication for active intervention from dental teams. To explore the process of oro-facial pain assessment and management, a comprehensive review of qualitative literature was undertaken by searching six electronic databases. No literature specific to orofacial pain assessment was identified. The inclusion criteria were widened to explore assessment and management of pain in general for patients with dementia. Meta-ethnography with reciprocal translation was used to identify key concepts and themes and synthesise information applicable to the dental setting. Three major themes arose as follows: challenges with pain assessment, challenges with pain management and logistics and education. Healthcare teams struggle with pain identification in patients with dementia though many signs were identified which may suggest a patient is experiencing pain. The long-term knowledge of individual patients held by family members and care teams can allow identification of deviation from patients' normal states; this knowledge can assist healthcare professionals in determining whether to provide specific treatments or interventions. Pain assessment tools were found to be problematic and are unlikely to be a practical solution to use for complex patients in dental settings. Education for dental and wider care teams on orofacial pain would be highly valuable; yet, this needs to be based on suitable evidence.

Pain assessment in individuals with dementia and communication problems in Spain. A systematic review

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE

Pain assessment in individuals with advanced dementia and communication problems continue to be underdiagnosed and undertreated due to the difficulty in performing this assessment. This review explores and synthesises how pain in individuals with advanced dementia and communication problems are being assessed in the context of Spanish healthcare.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A systematic review of the literature was conducted following the PRISMA criteria. We reviewed the databases of PubMed, Web of Science, Cinahl, Scopus, Dialnet and Cuitatge up to December 2017. Four independent reviewers identified studies that included instruments to assess pain in individuals with dementia and communication problems in the Spanish healthcare context. We performed a narrative synthesis of the included articles.

RESULTS

After applying the inclusion criteria, 10 studies were included. Of these, 4 were methodological studies validating Spanish versions of scales (Abbey, Algoplus, Doloplus and PAINAD-Sp), and 1 was on the development of the original EDAD scale. We also identified 3 studies conducted in Spain that used a translation of the PAINAD, 1 study that used a Spanish translation of Doloplus2 and 1 publication that included the use in Spain of a scale not validated for this patient profile (Pain-VAS).

CONCLUSIONS

There are currently several instruments validated in Spanish to assess pain in individuals with advanced dementia and communication problems (Abbey, Algoplus, Doloplus y PAINAD-Sp). However, these instruments have still not been widely used in research, and their psychometric properties could be improved.

Initial testing of a behavioural pain assessment tool within trauma units

Pain is common in trauma patients who may be older and also may have cognitive impairment leading to reduced communication about their pain. A number of observational pain assessment tools are available and have been found to have limited clinical usefulness. The Bolton Pain Assessment Tool (BPAT) was developed following a trial of three established tools and includes a section to involve family and/or close carers in the pain assessment process. The aim of this paper is to present the findings of initial testing of BPAT. BPAT was used and evaluated by clinical staff in four trauma units in the UK. Forty-six staff evaluations were completed and 98% indicated it was easy to use; it took between one and two minutes to complete by 69.5% and led to pain management interventions by 93.5% of the respondents. It was rated highly by the clinical staff, but the involvement of families and close carers in the assessment process was different at each unit, with one unit not involving the family/close carer. There remains the need for a simple and practical way of assessing pain. This initial testing of the clinical feasibility of BPAT suggests that it is easy to use and helps to identify pain, but further testing of its reliability and validity is required.

Increasing the Frequency and Timeliness of Pain Assessment and Management in Long-Term Care: Knowledge Transfer and Sustained Implementation

Background. Although feasible protocols for pain assessment and management in long-term care (LTC) have been developed, these have not been implemented on a large-scale basis. Objective. To implement a program of regular pain assessment in two LTC facilities, using implementation science principles, and to evaluate the process and success of doing so. Methods. The implementation protocol included a pain assessment workshop and the establishment of a nurse Pain Champion. Quality indicators were tracked before and after implementation. Focus groups and interviews with staff were also conducted. Results. The implementation effort was successful in increasing and regularizing pain assessments. This was sustained during the follow-up period. Staff members reported enthusiasm about the protocol at baseline and positive results following its implementation. Despite the success in increasing assessments, we did not identify changes in the percentages of patients reported as having moderate-to-severe pain. Discussion. It is our hope that our feasibility demonstration will encourage more facilities to improve their pain assessment/management practices. Conclusions. It is feasible to implement regular and systematic pain assessment in LTC. Future research should focus on ensuring effective clinical practices in response to assessment results, and determination of longer-term sustainability.