Innovation to enhance health in care homes and evaluation of tools for measuring outcomes of care: rapid evidence synthesis

Interventions to minimise hospital winter pressures related to discharge planning and integrated care: a rapid mapping review of UK evidence

Background

Winter pressures are a familiar phenomenon within the National Health Service and represent the most extreme of many regular demands placed on health and social care service provision. This review focuses on a part of the pathway that is particularly problematic: the discharge process from hospital to social care and the community. Although studies of discharge are plentiful, we identified a need to focus on identifying interventions and initiatives that are a specific response to 'winter pressures'. This mapping review focuses on interventions or initiatives in relation to hospital winter pressures in the United Kingdom with either discharge planning to increase smart discharge (both a reduction in patients waiting to be discharged and patients being discharged to the most appropriate place) and/or integrated care.

Methods

We conducted a mapping review of United Kingdom evidence published 2018-22. Initially, we searched MEDLINE, Health Management Information Consortium, Social Care Online, Social Sciences Citation Index and the King's Fund Library to find relevant interventions in conjunction with winter pressures. From these interventions we created a taxonomy of intervention types and a draft map. A second broader stage of searching was then undertaken for named candidate interventions on Google Scholar (Google Inc., Mountain View, CA, USA). For each taxonomy heading, we produced a table with definitions, findings from research studies, local initiatives and systematic reviews and evidence gaps.

Results

The taxonomy developed was split into structural, changing staff behaviour, changing community provision, integrated care, targeting carers, modelling and workforce planning. The last two categories were excluded from the scope. Within the different taxonomy sections we generated a total of 41 headings. These headings were further organised into the different stages of the patient pathway: hospital avoidance, alternative delivery site, facilitated discharge and cross-cutting. The evidence for each heading was summarised in tables and evidence gaps were identified.

Conclusions

Few initiatives identified were specifically identified as a response to winter pressures. Discharge to assess and hospital at home interventions are heavily used and well supported by the evidence but other responses, while also heavily used, were based on limited evidence. There is a lack of studies considering patient, family and provider needs when developing interventions aimed at improving delayed discharge. Additionally, there is a shortage of studies that measure the longer-term impact of interventions. Hospital avoidance and discharge planning are whole-system approaches. Considering the whole health and social care system is imperative to ensure that implementing an initiative in one setting does not just move the problem to another setting.

Limitations

Time limitations for completing the review constrained the period available for additional searches. This may carry implications for the completeness of the evidence base identified.

Future work

Further research to consider a realist review that views approaches across the different sectors within a whole system evaluation frame.

Funding

This award was funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Health and Social Care Delivery Research programme (NIHR award ref: NIHR130588) and is published in full in Health and Social Care Delivery Research; Vol. 12, No. 31. See the NIHR Funding and Awards website for further award information.

'I don't think they really link together, do they?' An ethnography of multi-professional involvement in advance care planning in nursing homes

BACKGROUND

Given the globally ageing population, care homes have an important role in delivering palliative and end-of-life care. Advance care planning (ACP) is promoted to improve the quality of end-of-life care in this setting. While many professionals can be involved in ACP, little is known about what influences multi-professional involvement and how multi-professional working impacts the ACP process in the UK. This study investigated multi-professional practice in relation to ACP in nursing homes.

DESIGN AND METHODS

An ethnography was undertaken in two UK nursing homes using multiple methods of data collection: observations, interviews and document review. Participants included the following: nursing home residents (n = 6), relatives (n = 4), nursing home staff (n = 19), and visiting health and social care professionals (n = 7). Analysis integrated thematic analysis, mapping of resident ACP trajectories and documentary analysis.

FINDINGS

This paper suggests that multi-professional and relatives' involvement in ACP was disjointed. Continuity and coordination were disrupted by misalignment of visiting professional and nursing home organisational structures. Findings show a 'knotworking' approach to teamwork and power imbalance between nursing home staff and visiting professionals, such as general practitioners. While residents wished their relatives to be involved in their ACP, this was not formally recognised, and limited support existed to facilitate their involvement.

CONCLUSION

The structure and organisation of multi-professional and relatives' involvement in ACP led to fragmentation of the process. This marginalised the voice of both the resident and nursing home staff, thereby limiting ACP as a tool to enhance quality of end-of-life care.

Patient safety. Factors for and perceived consequences of nursing errors by nursing staff in home care services

AIM

To identify factors for and perceived consequences of nursing errors by nursing staff in home care services in correlation with qualification, work experience, working hours and trainings.

BACKGROUND

Patient safety has increasingly been brought into focus of politics and care practices over the past few years. However, little evidence has been provided yet on nursing errors in out-of-hospital settings.

DESIGN

A cross-sectional study.

METHODS

Randomized sample of 107 home care services and 656 nurses and nursing assistants recruited from all 16 federal states in Germany.

RESULTS

Missing trainings on error management within the past 2 years were identified to be an important factor for mistakes regarding hygienic measures and medication administration. However, most errors arose in documentation without any significant differences in qualification, work experience, training and working hours.

CONCLUSION

Findings indicate that insufficient hygiene and medication administration might be reduced by implementing error management trainings on a regular basis in home care services.