BACKGROUND Nursing home residents are prone to acute illness due to their high age, underlying illnesses and immobility. We examined the incidence of acute hospital admissions among nursing home residents versus the age-matched community dwelling population in a geographically defined area during a two years period. The hospital stays of the nursing home population are described according to di...

OBJECTIVES This study examines the relationship between prior living arrangements and average activities of daily living (ADL) function upon nursing home admission across two states. METHODS Minimum Data Set Plus records from 1993 and 1994 on 4,837 Medicaid reimbursed nursing home residents aged 65 years and older from two states were used. Medicaid reimbursed residents were chosen because Me...

An increasing number of elderly patients in nursing home care appears to be presenting to hospital for acute medical admission. A survey of acute hospital care was undertaken to establish accurately the number and character of such admissions. A total of 1300 acute medical beds was surveyed in Northern Ireland in June 1996 and January 1997 on a single day using a standardised proforma. Demograp...

BACKGROUND Although it has long been known that a broad range of factors beyond medical diagnoses affect health and health services use, it has been unclear whether additional income can decrease health service use. We examined whether Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) receipt is associated with subsequent nursing home entry among low income older adults. METHODS We examined th...

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to compare disease status and health care use 1 year before and 1 year after skilled nursing home (SNH) admission. METHODS People over the age of 65 years admitted to SNH during the first quarter of 2013, covered by the national health insurance general scheme (69% of the population of this age), and still alive 1 year after admission were identified (n = ...

BACKGROUND Most nursing home residents spend the remainder of their life, until death, within a nursing home. As preserving dignity is an important aim of the care given here, insight into the way residents experience their dignity throughout their entire admission period is valuable. AIM To investigate if and how nursing home residents' personal dignity changes over the course of time, and w...

A growing elderly population coupled with a reduction in hospital long term care has led to an increase in the independent nursing home sector. This is an expensive resource. Proper placement is therefore essential to ensure its efficient use. Prior to the introduction of care management there was no standard assessment procedure for admission to nursing home care from different sources. A nurs...

To the Editor: We very much enjoyed reading the Editorial by Robert L. Kane ‘‘Ptolemaic Bathing’’ (1) and the original article by Gill and colleagues entitled ‘‘Bathing Disability and the Risk of Long-Term Admission to a Nursing Home’’(2). We would like to point out that, actually, Holroyd-Leduc and colleagues (3) did not find any independent relationship between urinary incontinence and Activi...

PURPOSE Advance directives are important planning and decision-making tools for individuals in nursing homes. DESIGN AND METHODS By using the nursing facility Minimum Data Set, we examined the prevalence of advance directives at admission and 12 months post-admission. RESULTS The prevalence of having any advance directive at admission declined slightly from 2000 to 2004, whereas the prevale...

Introduction The probability of entering a nursing home is not the same for everyone. Age, being a woman, and living alone are all risk factors. These risk factors are also interrelated: women have a higher probability of entering a nursing home, largely because they live longer and are more likely to live alone during their last years. Disability also increases the risk of entering a nursing h...