Supporting residential aged care through a Community of Practice

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolyn Hullick ◽  
Jane Conway ◽  
Roslyn Barker ◽  
Jacqueline Hewitt ◽  
Leigh Darcy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Community Of Practice ◽  
Aged Care ◽  
Residential Aged Care

scholarly journals Using a community of practice to evaluate falls prevention activity in a residential aged care organisation: a clinical audit

2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacqueline Francis-Coad ◽  
Christopher Etherton-Beer ◽  
Caroline Bulsara ◽  
Debbie Nobre ◽  
Anne-Marie Hill
Keyword(s):  
Vitamin D ◽  
Community Of Practice ◽  
Clinical Audit ◽  
Aged Care ◽  
Falls Prevention ◽  
Residential Aged Care ◽  
Prevention Policy ◽  
Shared Interest ◽  
Prevention Activity ◽  
Clinical Audits

Objective This study evaluates whether a community of practice (CoP) could conduct a falls prevention clinical audit and identify gaps in falls prevention practice requiring action. Methods Cross-sectional falls prevention clinical audits were conducted in 13 residential aged care (RAC) sites of a not-for-profit organisation providing care to a total of 779 residents. The audits were led by an operationalised CoP assisted by site clinical staff. A CoP is a group of people with a shared interest who get together to innovate for change. The CoP was made up of self-nominated staff representing all RAC sites and comprised of staff from various disciplines with a shared interest in falls prevention. Results All 13 (100%) sites completed the audit. CoP conduct of the audit met identified criteria for an effective clinical audit. The priorities for improvement were identified as increasing the proportion of residents receiving vitamin D supplementation (mean 41.5%, s.d. 23.7) and development of mandatory falls prevention education for staff and a falls prevention policy, as neither was in place at any site. CoP actions undertaken included a letter to visiting GPs requesting support for vitamin D prescription, surveys of care staff and residents to inform falls education development, defining falls and writing a falls prevention policy. Conclusion A CoP was able to effectively conduct an evidence-based falls prevention activity audit and identify gaps in practice. CoP members were well positioned, as site staff, to overcome barriers and facilitate action in falls prevention practice. What is known about the topic? Audit and feedback is an effective way of measuring clinical quality and safety. CoPs have been established in healthcare using workplace staff to address clinical problems but little is known about their ability to audit and influence practice change. What does this paper add? This study contributes to the body of knowledge on CoPs in healthcare by evaluating the performance of one in the domain of falls prevention audit action. What are the implications for practitioners? A CoP is an effective model to engage staff in the clinical audit process. Clinical audits can raise staff awareness of gaps in practice and motivate staff to plan and action change as recommended in best practice guidelines.

scholarly journals Evaluating the impact of a falls prevention community of practice in a residential aged care setting: a realist approach

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacqueline Francis-Coad ◽  
Christopher Etherton-Beer ◽  
Caroline Bulsara ◽  
Nicole Blackburn ◽  
Paola Chivers ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Community Of Practice ◽  
Care Setting ◽  
Aged Care ◽  
Falls Prevention ◽  
Residential Aged Care ◽  
Realist Approach ◽  
The Impact

Investigating the impact of a falls prevention community of practice in a residential aged-care setting: a mixed methods study protocol

2015 ◽  
Vol 71 (12) ◽  
pp. 2977-2986 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacqueline Francis-Coad ◽  
Christopher Etherton-Beer ◽  
Caroline Bulsara ◽  
Debbie Nobre ◽  
Anne-Marie Hill
Keyword(s):  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Community Of Practice ◽  
Study Protocol ◽  
Care Setting ◽  
Aged Care ◽  
Mixed Methods Study ◽  
Falls Prevention ◽  
Residential Aged Care ◽  
The Impact

“Consideration of patients as networked units to identify opportunities and motivation to enhance capability”: A mixed methods study to explore a personalised Digital Health Hub Model of Care for hip fractures in South Australia (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lalit Yadav ◽  
Tiffany K Gill ◽  
Anita Taylor ◽  
Jen DeYoung ◽  
Mellick J Chehade
Keyword(s):  
Hip Fractures ◽  
Digital Health ◽  
Family Members ◽  
South Australia ◽  
Aged Care ◽  
Mixed Methods Study ◽  
Residential Aged Care ◽  
Model Of Care ◽  
Factors Influencing

UNSTRUCTURED Introduction Majority of older people with hip fractures once admitted to acute hospital care are unable to return to their pre-fracture level of independence and a significant number are either newly admitted or return to residential aged care. Patient education involves family members and/or residential aged care staff as networked units, crucial for empowerment through improving health literacy. Advancement of digital technology has led to evolving solutions around optimising health care including self-management of chronic disease conditions and telerehabilitation. The aim of this study is to understand perspectives of older patients with hip fractures, their family members and residential aged carers, to inform the development of a digitally enabled model of care using a personalised digital health hub (pDHH). Methods A mixed methods study was conducted at a public tertiary care hospital in South Australia involving patients aged 50 years and above along with their family members and residential aged carers. Quantitative data, including basic demographic characteristics, access to computers and Internet were analysed using descriptive statistics. Spearman’s Rank Order Correlation was used to examine correlations between the perceived role of a pDHH in improving health and likelihood of subsequent usage. Whereas qualitative data included series of open-ended questions and findings were interpreted using constructs of capability, opportunity and motivation to help understand the factors influencing the likelihood of potential pDHH use Results Overall, 100 people were recruited in the study, representing 55 patients, 13 family members and 32 residential aged carers. The mean age of patients was 76.4 years (SD-8.4, age range 54-88) and females represented 60% of patients. Although a moderate negative correlation existed with increasing age and likelihood of pDHH usage (ρ= -0.50, p<0.001) the perceived role of the DHH in improving health had a strong positive correlation with the likelihood of pDHH usage by self (ρ=0.71, p<0.001) and by society, including friends and family members (ρ=0.75, p<0.001). Of particular note, almost all the patients (98%) believed they had a family member or friend /carer who would be able to help them to use a digital health platform. Whereas our qualitative findings suggest emphasising on complex interplay of capability, opportunity and motivation as crucial factors while designing a pDHH enabled model of care for hip fractures at a local context level. Conclusion Findings from this study contributed to understand the dynamics around capabilities, motivation and opportunities of patients, family members and formal carers as a “patient networked unit”. Future research recommendation must involve co-creation guided by iterative processes through improving understanding of factors influencing development and successful integration of complex digital healthcare interventions in real-world scenarios.

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