Perceptions of multidisciplinary case conferencing in residential aged care facilities

Abstract

Objective: To explore the understanding about and perceptions of, multidisciplinary case conferencing in residential aged care from the perspective of residential facility staff, residents, carers and general practitioners.Methods: Focus groups and in-depth interviews were conducted with nurses, residents, carers, allied health workers and general practitioners from two residential aged care facilities during February-March 2008. Conversations were analysed using thematic analysis techniques.Results: Thematic analyses highlighted four key themes. Most notably, respondents identified a degree of confusion regarding the purpose of case conferencing and its role in resident health care. The ad hoc development of the conferencing model led to unclear role descriptions for participants that contributed to role confusion and the lack of a collaborative culture. Underpinning much of the discussion was the need for a framework to support the organisation of the conference process. Conclusions:While the process of multidisciplinary case conferencing in residential aged care has significant potential to improve resident care and health outcomes, the development of an explicit framework is required to support the effective conduct of these meetings. Key stakeholders need to be engaged to develop a team approach to conducting case conferences that facilitates the active participation of providers, residents and CURRENT PROJECTIONS OF population ageing in Australia predict an increase from 1.3 million Australians aged over 65 years in 2002, to 2.2 million Australians aged over 65 years by 2020. 1 The increase in those aged over 85 years is projected to nearly double over this period. 1 Current reports suggest that some 6% of Australians aged over 65 years live in residential aged care facilities, with 29.5% of those aged over 85 years requiring residential care or an aged care support package. 2 If current trends in rising chronic and complex disease remain unchanged, the ageing of the population will significantly increase the demand for residential aged care

Perspectives on Mealtime Management in Residential Aged Care: Insights From a Cross-Disciplinary Investigation

“…Poor role description, disparity between responsibility for mealtime management, and hands-on mealtime assistance, as well as difficulty communicating recommendations and concerns about residents across facility staffing levels and between facility staff and speech-language pathologists were areas raised as being of particular concern in this study. The findings of this study support past recommendation for the explicit planning of multidisciplinary care in residential aged care settings and the use of direct strategies to increase understanding across disciplines about provider roles (17). These findings also support the call (32) for the development of service-specific guidelines to facilitate collaboration and consistency in service provision.…”

“…Findings from this study confirm that issues with interprofessional communication and collaboration persist (16)(17)(18)(19)(20)(21). Perspectives of both facility staff and speech-language pathologists confirm there are ongoing issues with multidisciplinary care in residential aged care settings (17,32) with a work environment that fosters open and equal communication and mutual respect across staffing levels and in decision making yet to be achieved.…”

“…Perspectives of both facility staff and speech-language pathologists confirm there are ongoing issues with multidisciplinary care in residential aged care settings (17,32) with a work environment that fosters open and equal communication and mutual respect across staffing levels and in decision making yet to be achieved. Poor role description, disparity between responsibility for mealtime management, and hands-on mealtime assistance, as well as difficulty communicating recommendations and concerns about residents across facility staffing levels and between facility staff and speech-language pathologists were areas raised as being of particular concern in this study.…”

“…One factor known to facilitate translation is the prioritization and inclusion of service provider perspectives (16)(17)(18)(19)(20). Specifically pertaining to mealtime management, it is known that registered nurses and assistants in nursing perceive time and resource constraints, poor food quality, and lack of teamwork among facility staff to limit nutrition management in residential aged care (21).…”

Interprofessional learning in residential aged care: providing optimal care for residents

“…Residential aged care facilities (RACF) provide an optimal learning experience for university student placements as it allows students to work with the complex needs of the elderly, thus providing an ideal environment to create an interprofessional learning experience (Halcomb et al 2009;Johnson 2010;Kanter 2012;Lucas et al 2013aLucas et al , 2013b. Although several studies focus on the student experience and attitudes towards interprofessional learning across many aged care facilities (Ponzer et al 2004;Hertweck et al 2012;Lie et al 2013;Lucas et al 2013aLucas et al , 2013b, there is very limited evidence around the perceived benefits and barriers to the residents and staff involved in interprofessional programs.…”