[The care of obese persons from the perspective of executives of inpatient care facilities. Results of qualitative expert interviews]. / Versorgung adipöser Menschen aus der Perspektive von Leitungskräften vollstationärer Pflegeeinrichtungen. Ergebnisse qualitativer Experteninterviews.

BACKGROUND: Although nursing home residents are increasingly suffering from obesity, little research has been done on the appropriate care for them. The present study examines how executives of long-term care facilities perceive obese residents, which meaning does obesity have for them, and whether they associate the care of the obese with additional expenditures. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In all, 15 guideline-based interviews were conducted with executive managers of nursing homes in Berlin, Saxony and Bavaria. The analysis of the interviews was based on the method of Meuser and Nagel. RESULTS: The results demonstrate that obese nursing home residents are hardly noticed by executives. This results from the fact that they attribute only minor significance to obesity as a nutritional and health problem. The care of obese residents is associated with additional instrumental and personnel-related expenditures. However, facilities do not have sufficient resources to provide them. Obesity is a serious, but unrecognized problem in long-term care. CONCLUSION: To improve the awareness of obesity, intense professional discussions are required. The provision of additional instrumental and human resources becomes necessary to ensure appropriate care of obese nursing home residents.