Vitamin D supplementation and falls in residential aged care: A longitudinal multisite cohort study.

Background: Vitamin D is vital for musculoskeletal health, and supplementation may lower risk of falls. Past research in residential aged care (RAC) settings on the effects of vitamin D on falls have reported inconclusive findings, partly due to study design limitations. We utilised a longitudinal study design to assess the association between the use of vitamin D and falls over 36 months in RAC. Method: A longitudinal cohort study was conducted using routinely collected electronic data spanning 9 years from 27 RAC facilities in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The study included 4520 permanent residents aged 65 years or older who were admitted for the first time from 1 July 2014 and stayed for a minimum of one month. We identified daily vitamin D usage over 36 months, and measured adherence using the Proportion of Days Covered (PDC) metric. A PDC value of ≥80 % signifies optimal adherence. Primary outcomes were the number of all falls and injurious falls. A rolling time-varying predictor-outcome approach and Generalized Estimating Equations (GEE) were applied to determine the longitudinal link between vitamin D supplement use and subsequent risk of falls. Results: Over two-thirds of residents (67.8 %; n = 3063) received vitamin D supplements during their stay, with a median PDC of 74.8 % among users, and 44.6 % (n = 1365) achieving optimal adherence. Increasing age, osteoporosis or fracture history, and dementia were associated with a greater likelihood of achieving optimal adherence. Crude fall incident rates were 8.05 and 2.92 incidents per 1000 resident days for all falls and injurious falls respectively. After accounting for relevant demographic and clinical factors, no significant links were observed between vitamin D supplement usage and fall outcomes: all falls (Incident Rate Ratio [IRR] 1.01; 95 % CI 1.00-1.02; P = 0.237) and injurious falls (IRR 1.01; 95 % CI 1.00-1.02; P = 0.091). Conclusion: Vitamin D supplementation was not associated with a reduced risk of falls, suggesting it is not an effective intervention for preventing falls in RAC. While clinicians should ensure adequate vitamin D intake for residents' nutritional and bone health, it should not be a standalone falls prevention intervention in RAC populations.

Benefits, implementation and sustainability of innovative paediatric models of care for children with type 1 diabetes: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The evidence about the acceptability and effectiveness of innovative paediatric models of care for Type 1 diabetes is limited. To address this gap, we synthesised literature on implemented models of care, model components, outcomes, and determinants of implementation and sustainability. METHODS: A systematic review was conducted and reported in accordance with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Database searches of Medline, CINAHL, EMBASE and Scopus were conducted. Empirical studies focused on Type 1 diabetes paediatric models of care, published from 2010 to 2022 in English were included. RESULTS: Nineteen extant studies reported on models and their associations with health and psychosocial outcomes, patient engagement with healthcare, and healthcare costs. Thirteen studies described multidisciplinary teamwork, education and capacity building that supported self-care. Four studies involved shared decision making between providers and patients, and two discussed outreach support where technology was an enabler. Fourteen studies reported improvements in health outcomes (e.g. glycaemic control), mostly for models that included multidisciplinary teams, education, and capacity building (11 studies), outreach support or shared care (3 studies). Four studies reported improvements in quality of life, three reported increased satisfaction for patients and carers and, and one reported improved communication. Four of five studies describing shared care and decision-making reported improvements in quality of life, support and motivation. Outreach models reported no negative outcomes, however, accessing some models was limited by technological and cost barriers. Eight studies reported on model sustainability, but only half reported implementation determinants; none reported applying a theoretical framework to guide their research. CONCLUSION: Some health and psychosocial benefits were associated with newer models. To address knowledge gaps about implementation determinants and model sustainability, longitudinal studies are needed to inform future adoption of innovative models of care for children with Type 1 diabetes.

The relationship between participation in leisure activities and incidence of falls in residential aged care.

BACKGROUND: Active engagement in leisure activities has positive effects on individuals' health outcomes and social functioning; however, there is limited understanding of the link between participation in leisure activities, particularly non-exercise activities, and falls in older adults. This study aimed to determine the relationship between participation in leisure activities and the incidence of falls, and the variation of this relationship by dementia status in residential aged care facilities (RACFs). METHODS: A retrospective longitudinal cohort study utilising routinely collected data (January 2021-August 2022) from 25 RACFs in Sydney, Australia, was conducted. The cohort included 3,024 older permanent residents (1,493 with dementia and 1,531 without) aged ≥65 and with a stay of ≥1 week. The level of participation in leisure activities was measured using the number of leisure activities per 1,000 resident days and divided into quartiles. Outcome measures were the incidence rate of all falls and injurious falls (i.e., number of falls per 1,000 resident days). We used multilevel negative binary regression to examine the relationship between leisure participation and fall incidence. RESULTS: For the whole sample, leisure participation was significantly inversely associated with the incidence rate of all falls and injurious falls. For example, residents in the high leisure participation group were 26% less likely to experience a fall compared to those in the low leisure participation group after controlling for confounders (incidence rate ratio = 0.74, 95% confidence interval = 0.60, 0.91). Such inverse relationship was observed in both exercise and non-exercise activities and was stronger among residents without dementia. CONCLUSIONS: Leisure participation is associated with a lower rate of falls, a key quality indicator by which RACFs are benchmarked and funded in Australia and many other countries. More recognition and attention are needed for the currently underfunded leisure activities in RACFs in future funding arrangement.

Development and internal validation of a dynamic fall risk prediction and monitoring tool in aged care using routinely collected electronic health data: a landmarking approach.

OBJECTIVES: Falls pose a significant challenge in residential aged care facilities (RACFs). Existing falls prediction tools perform poorly and fail to capture evolving risk factors. We aimed to develop and internally validate dynamic fall risk prediction models and create point-based scoring systems for residents with and without dementia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A longitudinal cohort study using electronic data from 27 RACFs in Sydney, Australia. The study included 5492 permanent residents, with a 70%-30% split for training and validation. The outcome measure was the incidence of falls. We tracked residents for 60 months, using monthly landmarks with 1-month prediction windows. We employed landmarking dynamic prediction for model development, a time-dependent area under receiver operating characteristics curve (AUROCC) for model evaluations, and a regression coefficient approach to create point-based scoring systems. RESULTS: The model identified 15 independent predictors of falls in dementia and 12 in nondementia cohorts. Falls history was the key predictor of subsequent falls in both dementia (HR 4.75, 95% CI, 4.45-5.06) and nondementia cohorts (HR 4.20, 95% CI, 3.87-4.57). The AUROCC across landmarks ranged from 0.67 to 0.87 for dementia and from 0.66 to 0.86 for nondementia cohorts but generally remained between 0.75 and 0.85 in both cohorts. The total point risk score ranged from -2 to 57 for dementia and 0 to 52 for nondementia cohorts. DISCUSSION: Our novel risk prediction models and scoring systems provide timely person-centered information for continuous monitoring of fall risk in RACFs. CONCLUSION: Embedding these tools within electronic health records could facilitate the implementation of targeted proactive interventions to prevent falls.

Effectiveness of fall prevention interventions in residential aged care and community settings: an umbrella review.

INTRODUCTION: Preventing falls is a priority for aged care providers. Research to date has focused on fall prevention strategies in single settings (e.g., residential aged care (RAC) or community settings). However, some aged care providers deliver care, including fall prevention interventions, across RAC and community settings. We conducted an umbrella review to identify what type of fall prevention interventions had the greatest impact on falls outcomes in RAC and community settings. METHODS: Five databases were searched for systematic reviews of falls prevention randomised control trials in older adults living in the community or RAC. Data extracted included systematic review methods, population characteristics, intervention characteristics, setting details (RAC or community), and fall-related outcomes (falls, people who have had a fall, fall-related hospitalisations, and fall-related fractures). Review quality was appraised using the Assessment of Multiple Systematic Reviews-2 tool. RESULTS: One-hundred and six systematic reviews were included; 63 and 19 of these stratified results by community and RAC settings respectively, the remainder looked at both settings. The most common intervention types discussed in reviews included 'exercise' (61%, n = 65), 'multifactorial' (two or more intervention types delivered together) (26%, n = 28), and 'vitamin D' (18%, n = 19). In RAC and community settings, 'exercise' interventions demonstrated the most consistent reduction in falls and people who have had a fall compared to other intervention types. 'Multifactorial' interventions were also beneficial in both settings however demonstrated more consistent reduction in falls and people who fall in RAC settings compared to community settings. 'Vitamin D' interventions may be beneficial in community-dwelling populations but not in RAC settings. It was not possible to stratify fall-related hospitalisation and fall-related fracture outcomes by setting due to limited number of RAC-specific reviews (n = 3 and 0 respectively). CONCLUSION: 'Exercise' interventions may be the most appropriate falls prevention intervention for older adults in RAC and community settings as it is beneficial for multiple fall-related outcomes (falls, fall-related fractures, and people who have had a fall). Augmenting 'exercise' interventions to become 'multifactorial' interventions may also improve the incidence of falls in both settings.

Innovative approaches to analysing aged care falls incident data: international classification for patient safety and correspondence analysis.

Falls in residential aged care facilities (RACFs) are common and can have significant health consequences. Understanding how and why falls occur in RACFs is an essential step to design targeted fall prevention and intervention programmes; however, little is known about falls' mechanisms in RACFs. This study aims to use international incident classification systems and novel analysis techniques to describe factors that contribute to falls requiring hospitalization in RACFs. Retrospective data of falls assessed by nurses as requiring hospitalization from 429 residents in 22 Australian RACFs in 2019 were used. Data were reviewed using a modified version of the International Classification for Patient Safety (ICPS), which categorizes patient safety into incident types and contributing factors using a three-tiered structure. The ICPS codes were summarized using the descriptive statistics. The association between assigned ICPS codes were analysed using correspondence analysis. Six hundred and three falls assessed as requiring hospitalization were classified into 659 incident types, with the most common incident type being 'patient incidents' (injury sustained/adverse effect in the health care system) (603, 91.5%) at Level 1, 'falls' (601, 91.2%) at Level 2, and 'falls involving bedrooms' (214, 32.5%) at Level 3. The 603 falls had 1082 contributing factors, with the most common contributing factor being 'patient factors' (events affected by factors associated with the patient) (982, 90.8%) at Level 1, 'patient not elsewhere classified' (characteristics of the patient contributed to the incident not classified elsewhere) (571, 52.8%) at Level 2, and 'loss of balance' (361, 33.4%) at Level 3. In a correspondence analysis, three dimensions were responsible for 81.2% of the variation in falls incidents and environmental and organizational factors were important factors contributing to falls. The application of the ICPS demonstrated that personal factors (e.g. pre-existing physical and psychological health or impairment) were the most common contributing factors to falls assessed as requiring hospitalization, while the correspondence analysis highlighted the role of environmental and organizational factors. The results signal the need for more research into multifactorial falls prevention interventions in RACFs.

Allied health service delivery in residential aged care and the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic: a survey of the allied health workforce.

Objectives Industry reports suggest that routine and essential care in Australian residential aged care (RAC), including allied health (AH) services, were disrupted during the coronavirus diseas 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. This study aimed to explore whether AH services in RAC were paused during the pandemic, factors associated with a pause in care delivery, and qualitative details on how COVID-19 impacted AH service delivery. Methods A 26-question survey was distributed via social media, health service providers, and AH networks between February and April 2022. Participation was restricted to AH professionals and assistants with experience in RAC during the pandemic. A mix of closed and open-ended response questions was used to collect demographic data and experiences of delivering care during the pandemic. Quantitative responses were analysed with descriptive statistics and a probit model. Content analysis was performed on open-ended questions. Results One hundred and four AH professionals and assistants responded to the survey. Fifty-five percent of participants (n = 51) were contractually or casually employed. AH services were negatively impacted by the pandemic with 52% of respondents experiencing a pause in service delivery and 78% reporting poorer AH care quality. In a probit model, contracted/casually employed respondents were more likely to experience a pause in care delivery (1.03, P < 0.05) compared to permanently employed AH professionals. Conclusion Insecure work arrangements may have exacerbated inconsistent care during the pandemic (impacting residents) and may have negative implications on the RAC AH workforce. In the future, an AH inclusive workforce policy including data collection and research is required to monitor and plan the RAC workforce.

The diversity of providers' and consumers' views of virtual versus inpatient care provision: a qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: A broad-based international shift to virtual care models over recent years has accelerated following COVID-19. Although there are increasing numbers of studies and reviews, less is known about clinicians' and consumers' perspectives concerning virtual modes in contrast to inpatient modes of delivery. METHODS: We conducted a mixed-methods study in late 2021 examining consumers' and providers' expectations of and perspectives on virtual care in the context of a new facility planned for the north-western suburbs of Sydney, Australia. Data were collected via a series of workshops, and a demographic survey. Recorded qualitative text data were analysed thematically, and surveys were analysed using SPSS v22. RESULTS: Across 12 workshops, 33 consumers and 49 providers from varied backgrounds, ethnicities, language groups, age ranges and professions participated. Four advantages, strengths or benefits of virtual care reported were: patient factors and wellbeing, accessibility, better care and health outcomes, and additional health system benefits, while four disadvantages, weaknesses or risks of virtual care were: patient factors and wellbeing, accessibility, resources and infrastructure, and quality and safety of care. CONCLUSIONS: Virtual care was widely supported but the model is not suitable for all patients. Health and digital literacy and appropriate patient selection were key success criteria, as was patient choice. Key concerns included technology failures or limitations and that virtual models may be no more efficient than inpatient care models. Considering consumer and provider views and expectations prior to introducing virtual models of care may facilitate greater acceptance and uptake.

Transition models of care for type 1 diabetes: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Managing the care regimen for Type 1 Diabetes is challenging for emerging adults, as they take on greater responsibility for self-management. A diverse range of models of care have been implemented to improve safety and quality of care during transition between paediatric and adult services. However, evidence about acceptability and effectiveness of these is limited. Our aim was to synthesise the evidence for transition models and their components, examine the health related and psychosocial outcomes, and to identify determinants associated with the implementation of person-centred models of transition care. METHOD: We searched Medline, CINAHL, EMBASE and Scopus. Peer reviewed empirical studies that focused on T1D models of care published from 2010 to 2021 in English, reporting experimental, qualitative, mixed methods, and observational studies were included. RESULTS: Fourteen studies reported on health and psychosocial outcomes, and engagement with healthcare. Three key models of care emerged: structured transition education programs (6 studies), multidisciplinary team transition support (5 studies) and telehealth/virtual care (3 studies). Compared with usual practice, three of the six structured transition education programs led to improvements in maintenance of glycaemic control, psychological well-being, and engagement with health services. Four MDT transition care models reported improved health outcomes, and improved engagement with health services, however, three studies reported no benefit. Reduced diabetes related stress and increased patient satisfaction were reported by two studies, but three reported no benefit. Telehealth and virtual group appointments improved adherence to self-management and reduced diabetes distress but did not change health outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Although some health and psychosocial benefits are reported, the results were mixed. No studies reported on T1D transition model implementation outcomes such as acceptability, adoption, and appropriateness among clinicians or managers implementing these models. This gap needs to be addressed to support future adoption of successful models.

What factors are considered in hospital funding models? A review of the literature on health services funding in organisation for economic co-operation and development countries.

BACKGROUND: One of the most difficult challenges in healthcare involves equitable allocation of resources. Our review aimed to identify international funding models in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries for government-funded public hospitals and evidence underpinning their efficacy, via review of the peer-reviewed and grey literature. METHODS: Ovid-Medline, Ovid Embase, Scopus, and PubMed were searched for peer-reviewed literature. Advanced Google searches and targeted hand searches of relevant organisational websites identified grey literature. Inclusion criteria were: English language, published between 2011 and 2022, and that the article: (1) focused on healthcare funding; (2) reported on or identified specific factors, indexes, algorithms or formulae associated with healthcare funding; and (3) referred to countries that are members of the OECD, excluding the United States (US). RESULTS: For peer-reviewed literature 1189 abstracts and 35 full-texts were reviewed; six articles met the inclusion criteria. For grey literature, 2996 titles or abstracts and 37 full-texts were reviewed; five articles met the inclusion criteria. Healthcare funding arrangements employed in 15 OECD countries (Australia, Belgium, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom [UK; specifically, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland]) were identified, but papers reported population-based funding arrangements for specific regions rather than hospital-specific models. CONCLUSIONS: While some models adjusted for deprivation and ethnicity factors, none of the identified documents reported on health systems that adjusted funding allocation for social determinants such as health literacy levels.

Just visiting: A qualitative study of Australian allied health professionals' experiences working in residential aged care facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

OBJECTIVES: Internationally, the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted health professionals' experiences of delivering effective care. The experiences of health professionals are important: poor experience has been associated with poorer patient outcomes and high staff turnover. This study aimed to narratively explore the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the experience of delivering allied health (AH) care in Australian residential aged care (RAC). METHODS: Semistructured interviews were conducted in February-May 2022 with AH professionals who had experience working in RAC during the pandemic. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and thematically analysed in NVivo 20. Twenty-five per cent of interview transcripts were independently analysed by three researchers to create a coding structure. RESULTS: Three themes were identified from interviews with 15 AH professionals to describe experiences delivering care pre-COVID-19, during COVID-19, and perceptions of care delivery in future. Prepandemic AH in RAC was believed to be under-resourced, delivering low-quality and reactive care. During the pandemic, pauses in, and the slow resumption of, AH services exacerbated professionals' feelings of being undervalued in resident care and in the workforce. Participants were optimistic about the impact AH could have in RAC in future if practice was embedded, multidisciplinary and funded appropriately. CONCLUSIONS: AH professionals' experiences of delivering care in RAC are often poor, regardless of the pandemic. Further research on multidisciplinary practice and health professional experience in RAC is needed.

Innovative models of healthcare delivery: an umbrella review of reviews.

OBJECTIVE: To undertake a synthesis of evidence-based research for seven innovative models of care to inform the development of new hospitals. DESIGN: Umbrella review. SETTING: Interventions delivered inside and outside of acute care settings. PARTICIPANTS: Children and adults with one or more identified acute or chronic health conditions. DATA SOURCES: PsycINFO, Ovid MEDLINE and CINAHL. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Clinical indicators and mortality, healthcare utilisation, quality of life, self-management and self-care and patient knowledge. RESULTS: A total of 66 reviews were included, synthesising evidence from 1272 primary studies across the 7 models of care. Virtual care was the most common model studied, addressed by 47 (73%) of the reviews. Common outcomes evaluated across reviews were clinical indicators and mortality, healthcare utilisation, self-care and self-management, patient knowledge, quality of life and cost-effectiveness. The findings indicate that the innovative models of healthcare we identified in this review may be effective in managing patients with a range of acute and chronic conditions. Most of the included reviews reported evidence of comparable or improved care. CONCLUSIONS: A consideration of local infrastructure and individual patient characteristics, such as health literacy, may be critical in determining the suitability of models of care for patients and their implementation in local health systems. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: 10.17605/OSF.IO/PS6ZU.

What do consumer and providers view as important for integrated care? A qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: Integrated care is a model recognised internationally, however, there is limited evidence about its usability in the community. This study aimed to elicit community and provider views about integrated care and how implementation could meet their healthcare needs in a new hospital. METHODS: Using a qualitative approach, consumer and provider views on the strengths, barriers and enablers for integrated care were collected via a series of online workshops and supplementary interviews. RESULTS: A total of 22 consumers and 49 providers participated in 11 focus groups; all perceived integrated care to be an accessible and efficient model that offers a high level of care which enhanced staff and patient well-being. Providers expressed concerns about longer waiting times and safety risks associated with communication gaps and insufficient staff. Enablers include supporting consumers in navigating the integrated care process, co-ordinating and integrating primary care into the model as well as centralising patient electronic medical records. DISCUSSION: Primary, tertiary and community linkages are key for integrated care. Successful interoperability of services and networks requires an investment in resources and infrastructure to build the capability for providers to seamlessly access information at all points along the patient pathway. CONCLUSION: Integrated care is perceived by consumers and providers to be a flexible and patient-focused model of healthcare that offers benefits for a hospital of the future.

Allied health in residential aged care: Using routinely collected data to improve funding opportunities.

Consumers and providers have long been advocating for increased access to and delivery of allied health services in Australian residential aged care (RAC). There is significant evidence that allied health interventions are effective; however, there is limited evidence on the benefit of routine day-to-day allied health service delivery in RAC. This information is critical to effectively inform funders and policy advisors of the necessity of allied health in RAC. To improve arguments for future funding opportunities, providers, facilities and consumers need to partner together to use routinely collected, yet disparate, data, in electronic health and billing records, to improve data collection practices and evidence generation on allied health in aged care.

Predictors of response rates of safety culture questionnaires in healthcare: a systematic review and analysis.

OBJECTIVES: Safety culture questionnaires are widely used in healthcare to understand how staff feel at work, their attitudes and views, and the influence this has on safe and high-quality patient care. A known challenge of safety culture questionnaires is achieving high response rates to enhance reliability and validity. This review examines predictors of response rates, explores reasons provided for low response rates and identifies strategies to improve those rates. METHODS: Four bibliometric databases were searched for studies assessing safety culture in hospitals from January 2008 to May 2022. Data were extracted from 893 studies that included a safety culture questionnaire conducted in the hospital setting. Regression was used to predict response rate based on recruitment and data collection methods (incentives, reminders, method of survey administration) and country income classification. Reasons for low response were thematically analysed and used to identify strategies to improve response rates. RESULTS: Of the 893 studies that used a questionnaire to assess safety culture in hospitals, 75.6% reported a response rate. Response rates varied from 4.2% to 100%, with a mean response rate of 66.5% (SD=21.0). Regression analyses showed that safety culture questionnaires conducted in low-income and middle-income countries were significantly more likely to yield a higher response rate compared with high-income countries. Mode of administration, questionnaire length and timing of administration were identified as key factors. Remote methods of questionnaire data collection (electronic and by post) were significantly less likely to result in a higher response rate. Reasons provided for low response included: survey fatigue, time constraints, and lack of resources. CONCLUSION: This review presents strategies for researchers and hospital staff to implement when conducting safety culture questionnaires: principally, distribute questionnaires in-person, during meetings or team training sessions; use a local champion; and consider the appropriate time of distribution to manage survey fatigue.

Therapy-based allied health delivery in residential aged care, trends, factors, and outcomes: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Allied health professionals in residential aged care facilities (RACFs) make important contributions to the physical and mental wellbeing of residents. Yet to date, health services research in RACFs has focused almost exclusively on nursing disciplines. This review aims to synthesise the current evidence on allied health services in RACF; specifically, how therapy-based allied health is delivered, what factors impact the quantity delivered, and the impact of services on resident outcomes and care quality. METHODS: Empirical peer-reviewed and grey literature focusing on allied health service delivery in RACFs from the past decade was identified through systematic searches of four databases and over 200 targeted website searches. Information on how allied health delivered, factors impacting service delivery, and impact on resident outcomes were extracted. The quality of included studies was appraised using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT) and the AACODS (Authority, Accuracy, Coverage, Objectivity, Date, Significance) checklist. RESULTS: Twenty-eight unique studies were included in this review; 26 peer-reviewed and two grey literature studies. Sixteen studies discussed occupational therapy and 15 discussed physiotherapy, less commonly studied professional groups included dieticians (n = 9), allied health assistants (n = 9), and social workers (n = 6). Thirteen studies were assigned a 100% quality rating. Levels of allied health service provision were generally low and varied. Five studies examined the association between system level factors and allied health service provision, and seven studies examined facility level factors and service provision. Higher levels of allied health provision or access to allied health services, specifically physiotherapy, occupational therapy, and nutrition, were associated with reduced falls with injury, improved care quality, activities of daily living scores, nutritional status, and meal satisfaction in five studies. CONCLUSION: Evidence on how allied health is delivered in RACFs, and its impact on resident health outcomes, is lacking globally. While there are some indications of positive associations between allied health staffing and resident outcomes and experiences, health systems and researchers will need commitment to consistent allied health data collection and health services research funding in the future to accurately determine how allied health is delivered in RACFs and its impact on resident wellbeing.

Correction: The Science of Learning Health Systems: Scoping Review of Empirical Research.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.2196/34907.].

How can the healthcare system deliver sustainable performance? A scoping review.

BACKGROUND: Increasing health costs, demand and patient multimorbidity challenge the sustainability of healthcare systems. These challenges persist and have been amplified by the global pandemic. OBJECTIVES: We aimed to develop an understanding of how the sustainable performance of healthcare systems (SPHS) has been conceptualised, defined and measured. DESIGN: Scoping review of peer-reviewed articles and editorials published from database inception to February 2021. DATA SOURCES: PubMed and Ovid Medline, and snowballing techniques. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA: We included articles that discussed key focus concepts of SPHS: (1) definitions, (2) measurement, (3) identified challenges, (4) identified solutions for improvement and (5) scaling successful solutions to maintain SPHS. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: After title/abstract screening, full-text articles were reviewed, and relevant information extracted and synthesised under the five focus concepts. RESULTS: Of 142 included articles, 38 (27%) provided a definition of SPHS. Definitions were based mainly on financial sustainability, however, SPHS was also more broadly conceptualised and included acceptability to patients and workforce, resilience through adaptation, and rapid absorption of evidence and innovations. Measures of SPHS were also predominantly financial, but recent articles proposed composite measures that accounted for financial, social and health outcomes. Challenges to achieving SPHS included the increasingly complex patient populations, limited integration because of entrenched fragmented systems and siloed professional groups, and the ongoing translational gaps in evidence-to-practice and policy-to-practice. Improvement strategies for SPHS included developing appropriate workplace cultures, direct community and consumer involvement, and adoption of evidence-based practice and technologies. There was also a strong identified need for long-term monitoring and evaluations to support adaptation of healthcare systems and to anticipate changing needs where possible. CONCLUSIONS: To implement lasting change and to respond to new challenges, we need context-relevant definitions and frameworks, and robust, flexible, and feasible measures to support the long-term sustainability and performance of healthcare systems.

The Science of Learning Health Systems: Scoping Review of Empirical Research.

BACKGROUND: The development and adoption of a learning health system (LHS) has been proposed as a means to address key challenges facing current and future health care systems. The first review of the LHS literature was conducted 5 years ago, identifying only a small number of published papers that had empirically examined the implementation or testing of an LHS. It is timely to look more closely at the published empirical research and to ask the question, Where are we now? 5 years on from that early LHS review. OBJECTIVE: This study performed a scoping review of empirical research within the LHS domain. Taking an "implementation science" lens, the review aims to map out the empirical research that has been conducted to date, identify limitations, and identify future directions for the field. METHODS: Two academic databases (PubMed and Scopus) were searched using the terms "learning health* system*" for papers published between January 1, 2016, to January 31, 2021, that had an explicit empirical focus on LHSs. Study information was extracted relevant to the review objective, including each study's publication details; primary concern or focus; context; design; data type; implementation framework, model, or theory used; and implementation determinants or outcomes examined. RESULTS: A total of 76 studies were included in this review. Over two-thirds of the studies were concerned with implementing a particular program, system, or platform (53/76, 69.7%) designed to contribute to achieving an LHS. Most of these studies focused on a particular clinical context or patient population (37/53, 69.8%), with far fewer studies focusing on whole hospital systems (4/53, 7.5%) or on other broad health care systems encompassing multiple facilities (12/53, 22.6%). Over two-thirds of the program-specific studies utilized quantitative methods (37/53, 69.8%), with a smaller number utilizing qualitative methods (10/53, 18.9%) or mixed-methods designs (6/53, 11.3%). The remaining 23 studies were classified into 1 of 3 key areas: ethics, policies, and governance (10/76, 13.2%); stakeholder perspectives of LHSs (5/76, 6.6%); or LHS-specific research strategies and tools (8/76, 10.5%). Overall, relatively few studies were identified that incorporated an implementation science framework. CONCLUSIONS: Although there has been considerable growth in empirical applications of LHSs within the past 5 years, paralleling the recent emergence of LHS-specific research strategies and tools, there are few high-quality studies. Comprehensive reporting of implementation and evaluation efforts is an important step to moving the LHS field forward. In particular, the routine use of implementation determinant and outcome frameworks will improve the assessment and reporting of barriers, enablers, and implementation outcomes in this field and will enable comparison and identification of trends across studies.

Engagement with healthcare providers and healthcare system navigation among Australians with chronic conditions: a descriptive survey study.

OBJECTIVES: With the rate of chronic conditions increasing globally, it is important to understand whether people with chronic conditions have the capacity to find the right care and to effectively engage with healthcare providers to optimise health outcomes.We aimed to examine associations between care navigation, engagement with health providers and having a chronic health condition among Australian adults. DESIGN AND SETTING: This is a cross-sectional, 39-item online survey including the navigation and engagement subscales of the Health Literacy Questionnaire, completed in December 2018, in Australia. Binary variables (low/high health literacy) were created for each item and navigation and engagement subscale scores. Logistic regression analyses (estimating ORs) determined the associations between having a chronic condition and the navigation and engagement scores, while controlling for age, gender, level of education and income. PARTICIPANTS: 1024 Australians aged 18-88 years (mean=46.6 years; 51% female) recruited from the general population. RESULTS: Over half (n=605, 59.0%) of the respondents had a chronic condition, mostly back pain, mental disorders, arthritis and asthma. A greater proportion of respondents with chronic conditions had difficulty ensuring that healthcare providers understood their problems (32.2% vs 23.8%, p=0.003), having good discussions with their doctors (29.1% vs 23.5%, p=0.05), discussing things with healthcare providers until they understand all they needed (30.5% vs 24.5%, p=0.04), accessing needed healthcare providers (35.7% vs 29.7%, p=0.05), finding the right place to get healthcare services (36.3% vs 29.2%, p=0.02) and services they were entitled to (48.3% vs 40.6%, p=0.02), and working out what is the best healthcare for themselves (34.2% vs 27.7%, p=0.03). Participants with chronic conditions were 1.5 times more likely to have low scores on the engagement (adjusted OR=1.48, p=0.03, 95% CI 1.05 to 2.08) and navigation (adjusted OR=1.43, p=0.026, 95% CI 1.043 to 1.970) subscales after adjusting for age, gender, income and education. CONCLUSION: Upskilling in engagement and communication for healthcare providers and people with chronic conditions is needed. Codesigned, clearly articulated and accessible information about service entitlements and pathways through care should be made available to people with chronic conditions. Greater integration across health services, accessible shared health records and access to care coordinators may improve navigation and engagement.