Research Highlights Importance of Post-Hospital Care for Nursing Home Residents

Research Highlights Importance of Post-Hospital Care for Nursing Home Residents
Research Highlights Importance of Post-Hospital Care for Nursing Home Residents

HEIDI DOUGLASS | h.douglass@unsw.edu.au

A collaborative study between researchers at the Department of Aged Care, St George Hospital, Calvary Health Care and UNSW Medicine’s Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing (CHeBA) has developed an intervention for nursing home residents following hospital discharge which has resulted in almost two thirds fewer hospital readmissions.

The findings from the intervention which were published in the March issue of JAMDA highlight the importance of follow through care of nursing home patients after hospital discharge, an aspect of care generally neglected in this group.

Lead author on the paper and senior lecturer at UNSW and senior staff specialist at St George and Calvary Hospitals, Dr Nicholas Cordato said that re-hospitalisation of nursing home residents is frequent, costly, potentially avoidable and associated with poor survival and diminished quality of life.

“Lack of specialist clinical input within facilities is a key factor,” said Dr Cordato.

Mindful of these issues, the collaboration developed the Regular Early Assessment Post-Discharge (REAP) intervention of coordinated specialist geriatrician and nurse practitioner evaluation and management of nursing home residents who have been recently discharged from hospital.

The intervention consists of seven regular monthly conjoint geriatrician and nurse practitioner nursing home visits of nursing home residents for the first six months following hospital admission.  Upon completion of a randomised-controlled study examining the effectiveness of the REAP intervention, the researchers identified significant benefits associated with the implementation of REAP.

Co-author on the study and co-director of UNSW’s Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing, Professor Henry Brodaty, said that the findings were extremely positive with almost two thirds fewer hospital readmissions and half as many Emergency Department visits compared with controls.

“Importantly, the total costs were 50% lower in the REAP intervention group, with lower total hospital inpatient and total Emergency Department Costs,” said Professor Brodaty.

According to Dr Cordato this research intervention has significant implications on the way in which health care is delivered to this vulnerable subset of our society.

This work was supported by an Establishment Grant from the St George and Sutherland Medical Research Foundation.

Media contact: Heidi Douglass, Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing, +61 2 9382 3398, 0435 579 202
h.douglass@unsw.edu.au

For more information about CHeBA: www.cheba.unsw.edu.au

Communications Contact

Communications contact: Heidi Douglass, Communications and Projects OffierHeidi Douglass
Team Lead – Innovations & Communications
T 0435 579 202
E h.douglass@unsw.edu.au