In the 2011/12 season, three influenza outbreaks were studied in nursing homes with high vaccination coverage in Navarre, Spain. Attack rates ranged from 2.9% to 67%. Influenza A/Stockholm/18/2011(H3N2) virus strain was isolated from the three outbreaks. Vaccination should be complemented with other hygiene measures in nursing homes. Early detection of influenza outbreaks in nursing homes can a...

BACKGROUND With the increase of the proportion of old (>80 years), frail people living in long-term care settings, concern about the quality of medication management processes in nursing homes is growing. OBJECTIVES To characterize the organization of medication management processes in Belgian nursing homes. METHOD This cross-sectional, observational study of a representative sample of 76 B...

AIM this paper explores the barriers that needed to be overcome during the process of implementing an integrated care pathway for the last days of life as a way of developing quality end-of-life care in nursing homes. METHODS an action research methodology underpinned the study. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected in eight nursing homes before, during and after the implementation...

BACKGROUND Knowledge of how work demands vary between different practice areas could give us a better understanding of the factors that influence the working conditions in the health services, and could help identify specific work-related challenges and problems in the different practice areas. In turn, this may help politicians, and healthcare administrators and managers to develop healthy wor...

BACKGROUND Antipsychotic medications are routinely prescribed in nursing homes to address the behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia. Unfortunately, inappropriate prescribing of antipsychotic medications is common and associated with increased morbidity, adverse drug events, and hospitalizations. Multifaceted interventions can achieve a 12-20 % reduction in antipsychotic prescribing ...

Hydration issues are important considerations for the elderly and infirm. What was previously taken for granted often becomes the focus of daily attention. Nursing homes must take a proactive stance in designing systems and training staff to deal with hydration. The minimum daily fluid requirements, and the steps necessary to investigate suspected dehydration, should be well known and understoo...

China is facing growing challenges from the increasing elderly population, the number of elderly who require care is growing, “4-2-1” family structure and “empty nesters” exacerbate the burden of care. The existing nursing homes are far from meeting the demand. However, two extremes exit: overcrowding and low occupancy because of cost, facilities and services. There is a severe shortage and ins...

The beginning of nursing education in Croatia can be traced back to the early 20th century, although the first organized care for the patients started in 1845, when six nurses arrived from Austria to Zagreb (1). The first nurses set up the foundations for two activities – educational work in schools and care for patients in hospitals and nursing homes. They were Nursing in Croatia: Past, Presen...

Many persons spend their final days as nursing home residents. It has been suggested that one set of factors powerfully and unfavorably influencing the quality of end-of-life (EOL) care provided in American nursing homes involves the anxieties that nursing home providers experience regarding potential negative legal entanglements and repercussions associated with the provision of EOL care to th...

The quality of the built environment can impact the quality of life and the sense of home of nursing home residents. This study investigated (1) which factors in the physical and social environment correlate with the sense of home of the residents and (2) which environmental factors are most meaningful. Twelve participants engaged in a qualitative study, in which photography was as a supportive...