The Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing at Florida Atlantic University recently received a $50,000 Engagement Award from the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) for a program to widely disseminate an evidence-based decision guide they’ve developed for nursing home residents and their families titled “Go to the Hospital or Stay Here? A Decision Guide for Patients and Families.”
“Hospitalization carries many risks including falls, pressure ulcers, infections, decline in function, and disorientation,” said Ruth Tappen, Ed.D., Christine E. Lynn Eminent Scholar and a professor in FAU’s College of Nursing. “One way that we can effectively inform patients and facilitate the decision-making process is by using tools that support the exchange of information between the health care provider and the patient.”
In a parent study, Tappen and colleagues identified the need for more effective decision support tools to help avoid two of the three most frequent reasons given by nursing home staff for avoidable or potentially avoidable hospital transfers: the insistence by the resident or family member for the transfer, and a communication gap between nursing staff, primary care providers and families.
