Dataset Information

How do emergency department staff respond to behaviour that challenges displayed by people living with dementia? A mixed-methods study.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

To investigate staff experiences of, and approaches to behaviour that challenges displayed by patients with dementia in the emergency department (ED). Behaviour that challenges is defined as 'actions that detract from the well-being of individuals due to the physical or psychological distress they cause within the settings they are performed', and can take many forms including aggressive physical actions, shouting and verbal aggression and non-aggressive behaviour including repetitive questioning, inappropriate exposure and resistance to care.

Design

Mixed-methods study consisting of an online survey and semistructured telephone interviews. Quantitative data were analysed and presented using descriptive statistics. Qualitative data were analysed thematically.

Setting

The EDs of three National Health Service (NHS) Hospital Trusts in Southwest England.

Participants

Multidisciplinary NHS staff working in the ED.

Results

Fifty-two online survey responses and 13 telephone interviews were analysed. Most (24/36, 67%) survey respondents reported that they had received general training in relation to dementia in the last 2-5 years, however, less than a fifth (4/23, 17%) had received any ED-specific dementia training. All (48/48) felt that behaviour that challenges could potentially be prevented, though resource constraints and practice variation were identified. Four main themes emerged from the qualitative data: (1) the 'perfect storm' of the ED; (2) behaviour that challenges is preventable with the right resources; (3) improvisation and (4) requirement for approaches that are specific to the ED.

Conclusions

The findings of this study suggest that ED staff do not feel that they are prepared to respond effectively to behaviour that challenges displayed by people living with dementia. Future work could adapt or develop an intervention to support ED staff in responding to behaviour that challenges.

SUBMITTER: Goodwin L

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10407375 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

How do emergency department staff respond to behaviour that challenges displayed by people living with dementia? A mixed-methods study.

Goodwin Laura L Liddiard Cathy C Manning Sera S Benger Jonathan Richard JR Carlton Edward E Cheston Richard R Hoskins Rebecca R Taylor Hazel H Voss Sarah S

BMJ open 20230804 8

<h4>Objectives</h4>To investigate staff experiences of, and approaches to behaviour that challenges displayed by patients with dementia in the emergency department (ED). Behaviour that challenges is defined as 'actions that detract from the well-being of individuals due to the physical or psychological distress they cause within the settings they are performed', and can take many forms including aggressive physical actions, shouting and verbal aggression and non-aggressive behaviour including re ...[more]

PMID: 37541746

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Project description:ObjectivesVeteran persons living with dementia (PLWDs) have high acute care utilization. We aim to understand why PLWDs seek care in the emergency department (ED) and how their utilization differs from older Veterans with no dementia diagnosis. We demonstrate the use of a novel national chief complaint data set in the Veteran Affairs Health Care System.MethodsThis was a retrospective observational study of ED users 65 years or older as of FY2017. The primary outcome is presence of one or more ED visits in FYs 2017-2018 using a logistic regression model controlling for dementia and other variables. Secondary outcomes include counts of ED visits by disposition, Emergency Severity Index, chief complaints defined by a natural language processing program, and ED encounter diagnoses defined by primary International Statistical Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10-CM) code.ResultsOur cohort of Veterans comprised 3,115,263 patients. Of those, 255,372 (8.2%) had a diagnosis of dementia. Logistic regression modeling demonstrated that dementia is a significant predictor of ED use (p < 0.0001), with PLWDs more likely to have an ED visit (odds ratio 1.96, 95% confidence interval 1.94-1.98). PLWDs were admitted at higher rates when accounting for age and acuity. Chief complaints that were more common among PLWDs included falls (6.7% dementia vs. 3.3% without dementia), weakness (3.6% vs. 2.2%), and abnormal mental state (2.2% vs. 0.4%). ICD-10-CM codes were largely similar between the two groups.ConclusionsOur results reinforce that the ED is a common access point for Veterans with dementia. These patients require special consideration as they are more likely to visit the ED and be admitted. Our use of a novel national chief complaint data set suggests that they more commonly present with certain geriatric syndromes and nonspecific complaints. Further work is needed to determine whether these would warrant targeted interventions to improve quality of acute care.

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Dataset Information

How do emergency department staff respond to behaviour that challenges displayed by people living with dementia? A mixed-methods study.

Objectives

Design

Setting

Participants

Results

Conclusions

Publications

How do emergency department staff respond to behaviour that challenges displayed by people living with dementia? A mixed-methods study.

Similar Datasets

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