ORCID Profile
0000-0002-7716-2599
Current Organisations
Flinders Medical Centre
,
Flinders University
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Publisher: Wiley
Date: 06-2023
DOI: 10.1111/IMJ.16115
Abstract: Reducing preventable readmissions is important to help manage current strains on healthcare systems. The metric of 30‐day readmissions is commonly cited in discussions regarding this topic. While such thresholds have contemporary funding implications, the rationale for in idual cut‐off points is partially historical in nature. Through the examination of the basis for the analysis of 30‐day readmissions, greater insight into the possible benefits and limitations of such a metric may be obtained.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 09-03-2017
DOI: 10.1007/S12603-017-0903-6
Abstract: Malnutrition is common in hospitalized patients with prevalence rates of up to 30% in Australian hospitals with adverse consequences for both the patients and health care services. Despite formulation of nutritional screening protocols, not all hospitalized patients get nutritional screening. Real life screening rates of hospitalized elderly patients are unknown. The present study explored nutrition screening rate in acutely unwell elderly patients admitted in a large tertiary hospital and how these patients fared depending upon their nutrition status. A prospective cross-sectional study involving 205 general medical patients ≥60years recruited between November 2014 and November 2015. The number of patients who missed nutrition screening were noted and all patients underwent nutritional assessment by a qualified dietitian using PG-SGA and quality of life was measured using EQ-5D 5L. A survival curve was plotted and multivariate cox proportional hazard model was used to adjust for confounders. Only 99 (49.7%) patients underwent nutritional screening. One hundred and six (53.5%) patients were confirmed as malnourished by PG-SGA. Malnourished patients had significantly longer length of hospital stay and had worse quality of life. Mortality was significantly higher in malnourished patients at one year (23 (21.7%) vs 4 (4.3%) p<0.001) and cox proportional hazard model suggests that malnutrition significantly affects survival even after adjustment for confounders like age, sex, Charlson index and polypharmacy. This study confirms that nutrition screening is still suboptimal in elderly hospitalized patients with adverse consequences and suggests need for review of policies to improve screening practices.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 12-2020
DOI: 10.1186/S12879-020-05670-8
Abstract: Influenza B is often perceived as a less severe strain of influenza. The epidemiology and clinical outcomes of influenza B have been less thoroughly investigated in hospitalised patients. The aims of this study were to describe clinical differences and outcomes between influenza A and B patients admitted over a period of 4 years. We retrospectively collected data of all laboratory confirmed influenza patients ≥18 years at two tertiary hospitals in South Australia. Patients were confirmed as influenza positive if they had a positive polymerase-chain-reaction (PCR) test of a respiratory specimen. Complications during hospitalisation along with inpatient mortality were compared between influenza A and B. In addition, 30 day mortality and readmissions were compared. Logistic regression model compared outcomes after adjustment for age, Charlson index, sex and creatinine levels. Between January 2016–March 2020, 1846 patients, mean age 66.5 years, were hospitalised for influenza. Of whom, 1630 (88.3%) had influenza A and 216 (11.7%) influenza B. Influenza B patients were significantly younger than influenza A. Influenza A patients were more likely be smokers with a history of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and ischaemic heart disease (IHD) than influenza B. Complications, including pneumonia and acute coronary syndrome (ACS) were similar between two groups, however, septic shock was more common in patients with influenza B. Adjusted analyses showed similar median length of hospital stay (LOS), in hospital mortality, 30-day mortality and readmissions between the two groups. Influenza B is less prevalent and occurs mostly in younger hospitalised patients than influenza A. Both strains contribute equally to hospitalisation burden and complications. Australia and New Zealand Clinical Trial Registry (ANZCR) no ACTRN12618000451202 date of registration 28/03/2018
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 02-2019
DOI: 10.1111/IMJ.14030
Abstract: Vitamin C has anti-oxidant properties and acts as a cofactor for several enzymes. Hypovitaminosis C has been associated with bleeding, endothelial dysfunction and death. The prevalence of hypovitaminosis C is unknown in Australian hospitalised patients, and its clinical relevance is uncertain. To determine the prevalence, characteristics and clinical outcomes of hospitalised patients with hypovitaminosis C. This observational study included general-medical inpatients in a tertiary-level hospital in Australia. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to determine plasma vitamin C levels. As per Johnston's criteria, vitamin C levels of ≥28 μmol/L were classified as normal and 5 days than those with normal vitamin C levels. Other clinical outcomes were similar between the two groups. Hypovitaminosis C is common in hospitalised patients and is associated with prolonged LOS. Further research is needed to ascertain the benefits of vitamin C supplementation in vitamin C-depleted patients.
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 26-02-2022
Abstract: Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant and facilitates neurotransmission. This study explored association between vitamin C deficiency and cognitive impairment in older hospitalised patients. This prospective study recruited 160 patients ≥ 75 years admitted under a Geriatric Unit in Australia. Cognitive assessment was performed by use of the Mini-Mental-State-Examination (MMSE) and patients with MMSE scores were classified as cognitively-impaired. Fasting plasma vitamin C levels were determined using high-performance-liquid-chromatography. Patients were classified as vitamin C deficient if their levels were below 11 micromol/L. Logistic regression analysis was used to determine whether vitamin C deficiency was associated with cognitive impairment after adjustment for various covariates. The mean (SD) age was 84.4 (6.4) years and 60% were females. A total of 91 (56.9%) were found to have cognitive impairment, while 42 (26.3%) were found to be vitamin C deficient. The mean (SD) MMSE scores were significantly lower among patients who were vitamin C deficient (24.9 (3.3) vs. 23.6 (3.4), p-value = 0.03). Logistic regression analysis suggested that vitamin C deficiency was 2.9-fold more likely to be associated with cognitive impairment after adjustment for covariates (aOR 2.93, 95% CI 1.05–8.19, p-value = 0.031). Vitamin C deficiency is common and is associated with cognitive impairment in older hospitalised patients.
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 10-12-2021
DOI: 10.3390/JCM10245780
Abstract: Frailty increases morbidity and mortality in heart failure (HF) patients. Current risk-adjustment models do not include frailty-status and the relationship between frailty and pharmacotherapy is unclear. This study explored trends in frailty over time and its relationship with prescription of heart failure specific pharmacotherapy in hospitalised HF patients. We used the Hospital Frailty Risk Score (HFRS) to determine frailty status of patients ≥18 years admitted between 2015–2019 at two tertiary hospitals in Australia. Patients with an HFRS ≥ 5 were classified as frail. In the 3706 patients with a mean (SD) age of 76.1 (14.4) years, 876 (23.6%) were classified as frail. HFRS was weakly correlated with age (r = 0.16) and Charlson-index (r = 0.35) (both p values 0.001). Whilst frailty was more common in older HF patients (28.9% of patients ≥80 years), 15.1% of patients ≤65 years of age were also found to be frail. The proportion of frail patients increased from 19.4% in 2015 to 29.2% in 2019 despite no significant change in age during this period. The proportion of patients who received heart failure specific pharmacotherapy decreased from 86.7% in 2015 to 82.9% in 2019 (p value = 0.03) and frail patients were significantly less likely to be prescribed HF specific pharmacotherapy than non-frail patients (77.4% vs. 85.9%, p 0.001).
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 17-02-2022
Abstract: Previous studies have reported differing clinical outcomes among hospitalized heart failure (HF) patients admitted under cardiology and general medicine (GM) without consideration of patients’ frailty. To explore outcomes in patients admitted under the two specialities after taking into account their frailty and other characteristics. This retrospective study included all HF patients ≥18 years admitted between 1 January 2013 and 31 December 2019 at two Australian tertiary hospitals. Frailty was determined by use of the Hospital Frailty Risk Score (HFRS) and patients with HFRS ≥ 5 were classified as frail. Propensity score matching (PSM) was used to match 11 variables between the two specialities. The primary outcomes included the days-alive-and-out-of-hospital (DAOH90) at 90 days of discharge, 30-day mortality and readmissions. Of 4913 HF patients, mean age 76.2 (14.1) years, 51% males, 2653 (54%) were admitted under cardiology compared to 2260 (46%) under GM. Patients admitted under GM were more likely to be older females, with a higher Charlson index and poor renal function than those admitted under cardiology. Overall, 23.8% patients were frail and frail patients were more likely to be admitted under GM than cardiology (33.6% vs. 15.3%, P & 0.001). PSM created 1532 well-matched patients in each group. After PSM, the DAOH90 was not significantly different among patients admitted in GM when compared to cardiology (coefficient −5.36, 95% confidence interval −11.73 to 1.01, P = 0.099). Other clinical outcomes were also similar between the two specialities. Clinical characteristics of HF patients differ between GM and cardiology however, clinical outcomes were not significantly different after taking into account frailty and other variables.
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 25-09-2021
DOI: 10.3390/JCM10194382
Abstract: Morbid obesity poses a significant burden on the health-care system. This study determined whether morbid obesity leads to worse health-outcomes in hospitalised patients. This retrospective-study examined nutritional data of all inpatients aged 18–79 years, with a body-mass-index (BMI) ≥ 18.5 kg/m2 admitted over a period of 4 years at two major hospitals in Australia. Patients were ided into 3 groups for comparison: normal/overweight (BMI 18.5–29.9 kg/m2), obese (BMI 30–39.9 kg/m2) and morbidly-obese (BMI ≥ 40 kg/m2). Outcome measures included length-of-hospital-stay (LOS), in-hospital mortality, and 30-day readmissions. Multilevel-mixed-effects regression was used to compare clinical outcomes between the groups after adjustment for potential confounders. Of 16,579 patients, 1004 (6.1%) were classified as morbidly-obese. Morbidly-obese patients had a significantly longer median (IQR) LOS than normal/overweight patients (5 (2, 12) vs. 5 (2, 11) days, p value = 0.012) and obese-patients (5 (2, 12) vs. 5 (2, 10) days, p value = 0.036). After adjusted-analysis, morbidly-obese patients had a higher incidence of a longer LOS than normal/overweight patients (IRR 1.04 95% CI 1.02–1.07 p value 0.001) and obese-patients (IRR 1.13 95% CI 1.11–1.16 p value 0.001). Other clinical outcomes were similar between the different groups. Morbid obesity leads to a longer LOS in hospitalised patients but does not adversely affect other clinical outcomes.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 22-11-2021
DOI: 10.1007/S12603-021-1704-5
Abstract: The Scored Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA) and Edmonton Frail Scale (EFS) are widely used in acute care settings to assess nutritional and frailty status, respectively. We aimed to determine whether the scored PG-SGA can identify pre-frailty and frailty status, to simultaneously evaluate malnutrition and frailty in clinical practice. Cross-sectional study. A convenience s le of 329 consecutive patients admitted to an acute medical unit in South Australia. Nutritional and frailty status were ascertained with scored PG-SGA and EFS, respectively. Optimal cut-off scores to identify pre-frailty and frailty were determined by calculating the Scored PG-SGA's sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, Youden Index (YI), Liu index, Receiver Operator Curves (ROC) and Area Under Curve (AUC). Nutritional status and patient characteristics were analysed according to frailty categories. The optimal cut-off PG-SGA score as determined by the highest YI, to identify both pre-frailty and frailty was >3, with a sensitivity of 0.711 and specificity of 0.746. The AUC was 0.782 (95% CI 0.731-0.833). In this cohort, 64% of the patients were well-nourished, 26% were moderately malnourished and 10% were severely malnourished. Forty-three percent, 24% and 33% of the patients were classified as robust, pre-frail and frail, respectively. Bivariate analysis showed that those robust were significantly younger than those who were pre-frail (-2.8, 95% CI -5.5 to -0.1, p=0.036) or frail (-3.4, 95% CI -5.9 to -1.0, p=0.002). Robust patients had significantly lower Scored PG-SGA than those who were pre-frail (-2.5, 95%CI -3.8 to -1.1, p<0.001) or frail (-4.9, 95% CI -6.1 to -3.7, p<0.001). The Scored PG-SGA is moderately sensitive in identifying pre-frailty/frailty in older hospitalized adults and can be useful in identifying both conditions concurrently.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 14-08-2018
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 02-2012
DOI: 10.1111/J.1445-5994.2011.02498.X
Abstract: In a rural Irish hospital, a simple clinical score (SCS) determined at the time of admission enabled stratification of acute general medical admissions into five categories that were associated incrementally with patients' immediate and 30-day mortality. The aim of this study was to examine the representative performance of this SCS in predicting the outcomes of general medical admissions to an Australian teaching hospital. A retrospective chart review was undertaken of a representative s le from 480 admissions in 2007 to an urban university teaching hospital in Australia. The SCS was calculated and related to that patient's outcome in terms of mortality, length of stay, nursing home placement on discharge, the occurrence of medical emergency team call and intensive care unit transfer. These data were compared, where possible, with the outcomes reported in the Irish hospital. Four hundred and seventeen complete sets of data allowed calculation of the SCS. There were significant linear correlations of the SCS ( ided into quintiles) and patients' in-hospital and 30-day mortality, their length of stay and their discharge to a nursing home. There was no association of the SCS and the patients' readmission rate, intensive care unit transfer rate or likelihood of a medical emergency team call. The significant trends replicated those from the Irish hospital. The SCS can predict significant outcomes for general medical admissions in an Australian hospital despite obvious differences to the hospital of its derivation. A wider study of Australasian hospitals and the performance of the SCS as a predictor of general medical admission outcomes is underway.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2021
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2022
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2022
Publisher: Mark Allen Group
Date: 13-10-2016
DOI: 10.12968/BJON.2016.25.18.1006
Abstract: Background: The rate of malnutrition among hospitalised elderly patients in Australia is 42.3%. Malnutrition is known to lead to significant adverse outcomes for the patients and increase hospital costs through increased use of resources. Aim: This study assessed nutrition screening adequacy and investigated factors associated with missed opportunity to diagnose malnutrition. Methods: A prospective cross-sectional study involving 205 general medical patients aged ≥60 years admitted acutely in a tertiary hospital over a period of 1 year. Patients who were not given initial nutritional screening were noted and all patients underwent nutritional assessment. The researchers assessed demographic data and performed univariate analysis of factors responsible for missed nutritional screening. Results: Only 99 patients (49.5%) were screened for malnutrition and 100 (50.3%) missed initial nutritional screening (data incomplete for 6 patients). Of those screened, more were malnourished (n=64 61.5%) than those not screened (n=40 38.5%), p .001. There was no significant difference in screening rates over the weekends and public holidays compared with weekdays (p=0.14). Time of day (p=0.03) and ward location (p=0.001) were significant factors, which determined nutrition screening. Conclusion: This study indicates common associations that might explain low inpatient screening rates for malnutrition these include apparently adequate nutritional status, lower staff to patient ratios and outlier ward locations. Ensuring consistent nutrition screening with appropriate therapeutic interventions for patients and educational interventions for staff could pay idends not only in terms of improved patient health but also in terms of hospital reimbursement.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2021
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 24-04-2023
DOI: 10.3390/JCM12093074
Abstract: Hospital readmissions place a burden on hospitals. Reducing the readmission number and duration will help reduce the burden. Weight loss might affect readmission risk, especially the risk of an early ( days) readmission. This study sought to identify the predictors and the impact of weight loss prior to a delayed readmission ( days). Body mass index (BMI) was measured during the index admission and first readmission. Patients, after their readmission, were assessed retrospectively to identify the characteristics of those who had lost % weight prior to that readmission. Length of stay (LOS), time spent in the intensive care unit (ICU) and the one-year mortality of those patients who lost weight were compared to the outcomes of those who remained weight-stable using multilevel mixed-effects regression adjusting for BMI, Charlson comorbidity index (CCI), ICU hours and relative stay index (RSI). Those who were at risk of weight loss prior to readmission were identifiable based upon their age, BMI, CCI and LOS. Of 1297 patients, 671 (51.7%) remained weight-stable and 386 (29.7%) lost weight between admissions. During their readmission, those who had lost weight had a significantly higher LOS (IRR 1.17 95% CI 1.12, 1.22: p 0.001), RSI (IRR 2.37 95% CI 2.27, 2.47: p 0.001) and an increased ICU LOS (IRR 2.80 95% CI 2.65, 2.96: p 0.001). This study indicates that weight loss prior to a delayed readmission is predictable and leads to worse outcomes during that readmission.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 03-10-2023
DOI: 10.1111/JCH.14735
Publisher: BMJ
Date: 06-2018
Publisher: Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC)
Date: 2011
DOI: 10.1039/C0NJ00544D
Publisher: BMJ
Date: 12-2020
DOI: 10.1136/BMJOPEN-2020-040146
Abstract: To determine the effectiveness of combined exercise-nutrition interventions in prefrail/frail hospitalised older adults on frailty, frailty-related indicators, quality of life (QoL), falls and its cost-effectiveness. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of combined exercise-nutrition interventions on hospitalised prefrail/frail older adults ≥65 years were collated from MEDLINE, Emcare, CINAHL, Ageline, Scopus, Cochrane and PEDro on 10 October 2019. The methodological quality was appraised, and data were summarised descriptively or by meta-analysis using a fixed effects model. The standardised mean difference (SMD) or difference of means (MD) with 95% CIs was calculated. Twenty articles from 11 RCTs experimenting exercise-nutrition interventions on hospitalised older adults were included. Seven articles were suitable for the meta-analyses. One study had low risk of bias and found improvements in physical performance and frailty-related biomarkers. Exercise interventions were mostly supervised by a physiotherapist, focusing on strength, ranging 2–5 times/week, of 20–90 min duration. Most nutrition interventions involved counselling and supplementation but had dietitian supervision in only three studies. The meta-analyses suggest that participants who received exercise-nutrition intervention had greater reduction in frailty scores (n=3, SMD 0.25 95% CI 0.03 to 0.46 p=0.02) and improvement in short physical performance battery (SPPB) scores (n=3, MD 0.48 95% CI 0.12 to 0.84 p=0.008) compared with standard care. Only the chair-stand test (n=3) out of the three SPPB components was significantly improved (MD 0.26 95% CI 0.09 to 0.43 p=0.003). Patients were more independent in activities of daily living in intervention groups, but high heterogeneity was observed (I 2 =96%, p .001). The pooled effect for handgrip (n=3)±knee extension muscle strength (n=4) was not statistically significant. Nutritional status, cognition, biomarkers, QoL, falls and cost-effectiveness were summarised descriptively due to insufficient data. There is evidence, albeit weak, showing that exercise-nutrition interventions are effective to improve frailty and frailty-related indicators in hospitalised older adults.
Publisher: BMJ
Date: 09-2022
DOI: 10.1136/BMJOPEN-2021-059905
Abstract: Up to 50% of heart failure (HF) patients may be frail and have worse clinical outcomes than non-frail patients. The benefits of HF-specific pharmacotherapy (beta-blockers, ACE-inhibitors/angiotensin-receptor-blockers and mineralocorticoid-receptor-antagonist) in this population are unclear. This study explored whether HF-specific pharmacotherapy improves outcomes in frail hospitalised HF patients. Observational, multicentre, cross-sectional study. Tertiary care hospitals. One thousand four hundred and six hospitalised frail HF patients admitted between 1 January 2013 and 31 December 2020. The Hospital Frailty Risk Score (HFRS) determined frailty status and patients with HFRS ≥5 were classified as frail. The primary outcomes included the days alive and out of hospital (DAOH) at 90 days following discharge, 30-day and 180-day mortality, length of hospital stay (LOS) and 30-day readmissions. Propensity score matching (PSM) compared clinical outcomes depending on the receipt of HF-specific pharmacotherapy. Of 5734 HF patients admitted over a period of 8 years, 1406 (24.5%) were identified as frail according to the HFRS and were included in this study. Of 1406 frail HF patients, 1025 (72.9%) received HF-specific pharmacotherapy compared with 381 (27.1%) who did not receive any of these medications. Frail HF patients who did not receive HF-specific pharmacotherapy were significantly older, with higher creatinine and brain natriuretic peptide but with lower haemoglobin and albumin levels (p .05) when compared with those frail patients who received HF medications. After PSM frail patients on treatment were more likely to have an increased DAOH (coefficient 16.18, 95% CI 6.32 to 26.04, p=0.001) than those who were not on treatment. Both 30-day (OR 0.30, 95% CI 0.23 to 0.39, p .001) and 180-day mortality (OR 0.43, 95% CI 0.33 to 0.54, p .001) were significantly lower in frail patients on HF treatment but, there were no significant differences in LOS and 30-day readmissions (p .05). This study found an association between the use of HF-specific pharmacotherapy and improved clinical outcomes in frail HF hospitalised patients when compared to those who were not on treatment. ANZCTRN383195.
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 02-06-2023
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2021
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 04-05-2017
DOI: 10.1093/QJMED/HCX095
Abstract: The benefit of providing early nutrition intervention and its continuation post-discharge in older hospitalized patients is unclear. This study examined efficacy of such an intervention in older patients discharged from acute care. In this randomized controlled trial, 148 malnourished patients were randomized to receive either a nutrition intervention for 3 months or usual care. Intervention included an in idualized nutrition care plan plus monthly post-discharge telehealth follow-up whereas control patients received intervention only upon referral by their treating clinicians. Nutrition status was determined by the Patient Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA) tool. Clinical outcomes included changes in length of hospital stay, complications during hospitalization, Quality of life (QoL), mortality and re-admission rate. Fifty-four males and 94 females (mean age, 81.8 years) were included. Both groups significantly improved PG-SGA scores from baseline. There was no between-group differences in the change in PG-SGA scores and final PG-SGA scores were similar at 3 months 6.9 (95% CI 5.6-8.3) vs. 5.8 (95% CI 4.8-6.9) (P = 0.09), in control and intervention groups, respectively. Median total length of hospital stay was 6 days shorter in the intervention group (11.4 (IQR 16.6) vs. 5.4 (IQR 8.1) (P = 0.01). There was no significant difference in complication rate during hospitalization, QoL and mortality at 3-months or readmission rate at 1, 3 or 6 months following hospital discharge. In older malnourished inpatients, an early and extended nutrition intervention showed a trend towards improved nutrition status and significantly reduced length of hospital stay.
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2020
DOI: 10.1071/AH18040
Abstract: Objective Risk factors and clinical outcomes of non-index hospital readmissions (readmissions to a hospital different from the previous admission) have not been studied in Australia. The present study compared characteristics and clinical outcomes between index and non-index hospital readmissions in the Australian healthcare setting. Methods This retrospective cohort study included medical admissions from 2012 to 2016 across all major public hospitals in South Australia. Readmissions within 30 day to all public hospitals were captured using electronic health information system. In-hospital mortality and readmission length of hospital stay (LOS) were compared, along with 30-day mortality and subsequent readmissions among patients readmitted to index or non-index hospitals. Results Of 114105 index admissions, there were 20539 (18.0%) readmissions. Of these, 17519 (85.3%) were index readmissions and 3020 (14.7%) were non-index readmissions. Compared with index readmissions, patients in the non-index readmissions group had a lower Charlson comorbidity index, shorter LOS and fewer complications during the index admission and were more likely to be readmitted with a different diagnosis to the index admission. No difference in in-hospital mortality was observed, but readmission LOS was shorter and 30-day mortality was higher among patients with non-index readmissions. Conclusion A substantial proportion of patients experienced non-index hospital readmissions. Non-index hospital readmitted patients had no immediate adverse outcomes, but experienced worse 30-day outcomes. What is known about the topic? A significant proportion of unplanned hospital readmissions occur to non-index hospitals. North American studies suggest that non-index hospital readmissions are associated with worse outcomes for patients due to discontinuity of care, medical reconciliation and delayed treatment. Limited studies have determined factors associated with non-index hospital readmissions in Australia, but whether such readmissions lead to adverse clinical outcomes is unknown. What does this paper add? In the Australian healthcare setting, 14.7% of patients were readmitted to non-index hospitals. Compared with index hospital readmissions, patients admitted to non-index hospitals had a lower Charlson comorbidity index, a shorter index LOS and fewer complications during the index admission. At the time of readmission there was no differences in discharge summary completion rates between the two groups. Unlike other studies, the present study found no immediate adverse outcomes for patients readmitted to non-index hospitals, but 30-day outcomes were worse than for patients who had an index hospital readmission. What are the implications for practitioners? Non-index hospital readmissions may not be totally preventable due to factors such as ambulance ersions stemming from emergency department overcrowding and prolonged emergency department waiting times. Patients should be advised to re-present to hospital in case they experience recurrence or relapse of a medical condition, and preferably should be readmitted to the same hospital to prevent discontinuity of care.
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 14-04-2022
DOI: 10.3390/JCM11082193
Abstract: Frailty is common in older hospitalised heart-failure (HF) patients but is not routinely assessed. The hospital frailty-risk score (HFRS) can be generated from administrative data, but it needs validation in Australian health-care settings. This study determined the HFRS scores at presentation to hospital in 5735 HF patients ≥ 75 years old, admitted over a period of 7 years, at two tertiary hospitals in Australia. Patients were classified into 3 frailty categories: HFRS 5 (low risk), 5–15 (intermediate risk) and (high risk). Multilevel multivariable regression analysis determined whether the HFRS predicts the following clinical outcomes: 30-day mortality, length of hospital stay (LOS) 7 days, and 30-day readmissions this was determined after adjustment for age, sex, Charlson index and socioeconomic status. The mean (SD) age was 76.1 (14.0) years, and 51.9% were female. When compared to the low-risk HFRS group, patients in the high-risk HFRS group had an increased risk of 30-day mortality and prolonged LOS (adjusted OR (aOR) 2.09 95% CI 1.21–3.60) for 30-day mortality, and an aOR of 1.56 (95% CI 1.01–2.43) for prolonged LOS (c-statistics 0.730 and 0.682, respectively). Similarly, the 30-day readmission rate was significantly higher in the high-risk HFRS group when compared to the low-risk group (aOR 1.69 95% CI 1.06–2.69 c-statistic = 0.643). The HFRS, derived at admission, can be used to predict ensuing clinical outcomes among older hospitalised HF patients.
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 05-2023
DOI: 10.2147/CIA.S405144
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 19-06-2023
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2021
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2018
DOI: 10.1016/J.JAND.2017.10.010
Abstract: Undernourished patients discharged from the hospital require follow-up however, attendance at return visits is low. Teleconsultations may allow remote follow-up of undernourished patients however, no valid method to remotely perform physical examination, a critical component of assessing nutritional status, exists. This study aims to compare agreement between photographs taken by trained dietitians and in-person physical examinations conducted by trained dietitians to rate the overall physical examination section of the scored Patient Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA). Nested cross-sectional study. Adults aged ≥60 years, admitted to the general medicine unit at Flinders Medical Centre between March 2015 and March 2016, were eligible. All components of the PG-SGA and photographs of muscle and fat sites were collected from 192 participants either in the hospital or at their place of residence after discharge. Validity of photograph-based physical examination was determined by collecting photographic and PG-SGA data from each participant at one encounter by trained dietitians. A dietitian blinded to data collection later assessed de-identified photographs on a computer. Percentage agreement, weighted kappa agreement, sensitivity, and specificity between the photographs and in-person physical examinations were calculated. All data collected were included in the analysis. Overall, the photograph-based physical examination rating achieved a percentage agreement of 75.8% against the in-person assessment, with a weighted kappa agreement of 0.526 (95% CI: 0.416, 0.637 P<0.05) and a sensitivity-specificity pair of 66.9% (95% CI: 57.8%, 75.0%) and 92.4% (95% CI: 82.5%, 97.2%). Photograph-based physical examination by trained dietitians achieved a nearly acceptable percentage agreement, moderate weighted kappa, and fair sensitivity-specificity pair. Methodological refinement before field testing with other personnel may improve the agreement and accuracy of photograph-based physical examination.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2023
DOI: 10.1016/J.HLC.2022.10.011
Abstract: Malnutrition is common in patients with heart failure (HF) but is often neglected, despite guidelines suggesting that all hospitalised patients should undergo nutritional screening within 24-hours of admission. This study investigated the nutritional screening rates and determined the immediate and long-term clinical outcomes in patients with HF admitted at two tertiary hospitals in Australia. Nutritional screening was assessed by the Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool (MUST) completion rates. Patients were classified into two categories based on their MUST scores (0=low malnutrition risk and ≥1=at risk of malnutrition). Propensity-score-matching (PSM) was used to match 20 variables depending upon the risk of malnutrition. Clinical outcomes included the days-alive-and-out-of-hospital at 90 days of discharge (DAOH90), length of hospital stay, in-hospital, 30-day and 180-day mortality and 30-day readmissions. There were 5,734 HF admissions between 2013-2020, of whom, only 789 (13.8%) patients underwent MUST screening. The mean (SD) age was 76.2 (14.0) years and 51.9% were males. Five-hundred and fifty-four (554) (70.2%) patients were at low malnutrition risk and 235 (29.8%) at risk of malnutrition. In HF patients, who were at risk of malnutrition, the DAOH90 were lower by 5.9 days (95% CI -11.49 to -0.42, p=0.035) and 180-day mortality was significantly worse (coefficient 0.10, 95% CI 0.02-0.18, p=0.007) compared to those who were at low risk of malnutrition. However, other clinical outcomes were similar between the two groups. Nutrition screening is poor in hospitalised HF patients and long-term but not short-term clinical outcomes were worse in malnourished HF patients.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 05-02-2018
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 20-06-2021
DOI: 10.3390/NU13062117
Abstract: Frailty is common in older hospitalised patients and may be associated with micronutrient malnutrition. Only limited studies have explored the relationship between frailty and vitamin C deficiency. This study investigated the prevalence of vitamin C deficiency and its association with frailty severity in patients ≥75 years admitted under a geriatric unit. Patients (n = 160) with a mean age of 84.4 ± 6.4 years were recruited and underwent frailty assessment by use of the Edmonton Frail Scale (EFS). Patients with an EFS score were classified as non-frail/vulnerable/mildly frail and those with ≥10 as moderate–severely frail. Patients with vitamin C levels between 11–28 μmol/L were classified as vitamin C depleted while those with levels μmol/L were classified as vitamin C deficient. A multivariate logistic regression model determined the relationship between vitamin C deficiency and frailty severity after adjustment for various co-variates. Fifty-seven (35.6%) patients were vitamin C depleted, while 42 (26.3%) had vitamin C deficiency. Vitamin C levels were significantly lower among patients who were moderate–severely frail when compared to those who were non-frail/vulnerable/mildly frail (p 0.05). After adjusted analysis, vitamin C deficiency was 4.3-fold more likely to be associated with moderate–severe frailty (aOR 4.30, 95% CI 1.33-13.86, p = 0.015). Vitamin C deficiency is common and is associated with a greater severity of frailty in older hospitalised patients.
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