Among older adults, the prevalence of malnutrition ranges from 17% to 65% – depending on the group and setting.1 Patients from rehab facilities, long-term care residents, and elderly patients requiring a higher level of care make up the upper end of that range. The prevalence of malnutrition among older adults presents a particular concern for doctors, families and care planners, because malnutrition has been connected with increased rehospitalization/hospitalization, increased length of stay with inpatient care settings, falls, hip fractures, depression, poor quality of life, and increased mortality.2-5
Earlier this year, the Journal of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition published an important study demonstrating the clinical efficacy of home care interventions for malnutrition.6 Five home care branches offered nutritional support for a total of 1,546 patients determined to be at moderate or high risk of malnutrition. Teaching and facilitation for certain nutritional supplements were a consistent component of their intervention. Ensure, Glucerna, or Nepro were prescribed according to individual patient need. Outcomes of at-home malnutrition interventions were compared to the outcomes of matched cohorts. The home health malnutrition intervention was associated with a hospitalization risk lowered by 24%, 23%, and 18% at 30, 60, and 90 days, respectively. This improved health resulted in 90-day medical costs reduced by $1,500 per patient, on average. The results demonstrate (1) the clinical relevance of nutrition among elderly patients and (2) the potential efficacy of simple at-home interventions.
Who among your patients, friends and family would benefit from nutritional support from a home care agency? In the current study, Riley et al. used a simple, 12-question screening tool to determine which patients were most likely to benefit. These questions could be used to trigger a conversation about independence with important ADLs and the availability of reliable, professional home care services.
With access to the home and making multiple visits per week, McKenney Home Care can be involved in pantry review, health monitoring, patient/caregiver education, grocery planning and shopping, meal preparation, and adherence to therapeutic diets. As demonstrated by the current study, at-home nutritional support can make large, measurable changes in patient health.
McKenney Home Care in Naples, FL hosts a Lewy Body Dementia Support Group on the first Wednesday of every month. This ongoing support group is approved by the Lewy Body Dementia Association in Atlanta and is in affiliation with the Parkinson’s Association of SWFL and the Alzheimer’s Support Network.
McKenney Home Care provides exceptional in-home health services and client-centered care. With a passion for maximizing the quality of life of their clients and their families, they are driven to ensure social engagement and specialty services during all stages of life.
For Individuals with neurodegenerative disorders, McKenney Home Care delivers enriched specialized training for its caregivers working with Dementia Patients. In addition to specialized videos and manuals, McKenney educates the caregivers through the use of the Virtual Alzheimer’s App. This virtual reality experience helps caregivers understand the feelings and experience of those suffering from Alzheimer’s and other forms of Dementia.
Along with their medical expertise, McKenney Home Care is a certified Music & Memory Agency. Providing help for Dementia Patients; this specialized music therapy program is highly personalized and has been shown to reduce the need for anti-anxiety and antipsychotic drugs by up to 50%, while brining joy to the lives of patients who have Dementia.
If you or someone you know would like more information about McKenney Home Care or the LBD Support Group, please call McKenney Home Care at 239-325-2273, or visit mckenneyhomecare.com.
CALL US TODAY!
239-325-CARE (2273)
9655 Tamiami Trail North #201
Naples, FL 34108
References:
1. Isenring E, Banks M, Ferguson M, et al. Beyond malnutrition screening: appropriate methods to guide nutrition care for aged care residents. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2012; 112: 376-381.
2. Pirlich M, Schutz T, Norman K, et al. The German hospital malnutrition study. Clin Nutr. 2006; 25 (4): 563-572.
3. Thomas J, Isenring E, Kellett E. Nutritional status and length of stay in patients admitted to an acute assessment unit. J Hum Nutr Diet. 2007; 20 (4): 320-328.
4. Visvanathan R, Penhall R, Chapman I. Nutritional screening of older people in a sub-acute care facility in Australia and its rela-tion to discharge outcomes. Age Ageing. 2004; 33 (3): 260-265.
5. Correia J, Martins C, Amaral T. Efficiency of MST-Malnutrition Screening Tool in elderly hospitalized patients. Clin Nutr. 2003; 22 (suppl 1): S10.
6. Riley K, Sulo S, Dabbous F, Partridge J, Kozmic S, Landow W, VanDerBosch G, Falson MK, Sriram K. Reducing Hospitalizations and Costs: A Home Health Nutrition‐Focused Quality Improvement Program. Journal of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition. 2020 Jan;44(1):58-68.
7. Markle‐Reid M, Ploeg J, Fraser KD, Fisher KA, Bartholomew A, Griffith LE, Miklavcic J, Gafni A, Thabane L, Upshur R. Commu-nity Program Improves Quality of Life and Self‐Management in Older Adults with Diabetes Mellitus and Comorbidity. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. 2018 Feb;66(2):263-73.
8. Ried‐Larsen M, Johansen MY, MacDonald CS, Hansen KB, Christensen R, Wedell‐Neergaard AS, Pilmark NS, Langberg H, Vaag AA, Pedersen BK, Karstoft K. Type 2 diabetes remission one year after an intensive lifestyle intervention: A secondary analysis of a randomized clinical trial. Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism. 2019 Jun 5.
9. Hopkins MD, Taylor R, Lean ME. The DiRECT principles: giving Type 2 diabetes remission programmes the best chance of suc-cess. Diabetic Medicine. 2019 Sep 4.
10. Qumby K, George C, Hambleton I, Olivier P, Unwin N. 3461 A community-based, low calorie dietary intervention for the pre-vention and remission of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Journal of Clinical and Translational Science. 2019 Mar;3(s1):137.
11. Gaskill D, Isenring E, Black L, et al. Maintaining nutrition in aged care residents with a train-the-trainer intervention and nutri-tion coordinator. J Nutr Health Aging. 2009; 13 (10): 913-917.
12. Milne A, Potter J, Vivanti A, et al. Protein and energy supplementation in elderly people at risk from malnutrition. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2009: 2.