Psoas Muscle Area as a Predictor of Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation Outcomes.

BACKGROUND: Frailty is a well-recognised predictor of outcomes after transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). Psoas muscle area (PMA) is a surrogate marker for sarcopaenia and is a validated assessment tool for frailty. The objective of this study was to examine frailty as a predictor of outcomes in TAVI patients and assess the prognostic usefulness of adding PMA to established frailty assessments. METHODS: Frailty assessments were performed on 220 consecutive patients undergoing TAVI. These assessments used four markers (serum albumin, handgrip strength, gait speed, and a cognitive assessment), which were combined to form a composite frailty score. Preprocedural computed tomography scans were used to calculate cross-sectional PMA for each patient. The primary outcomes were all-cause mortality at 1-year and post-procedure length of hospital stay. RESULTS: Frailty status, as defined by the composite frailty score, was independently predictive of length of hospital stay (p=0.001), but not predictive of 1-year mortality (p=0.161). Albumin (p=0.036) and 5-metre walk test (p=0.003) were independently predictive of 1-year mortality. The PMA, when adjusted for gender, and normalised according to body surface area, was not predictive of 1-year mortality. Normalised PMA was associated with increased post-procedure length of stay within the female population (p=0.031). CONCLUSIONS: A low PMA is associated with increased length of hospital stay in female TAVI patients but does not provide additional predictive value over traditional frailty scores. The PMA was not shown to correlate with TAVI-related complications or 1-year mortality.

Dementia and relationships: experiences of partners in minority ethnic communities.

AIM: This article is a report of a study aimed at examining the experiences of partners of people with dementia in two minority ethnic communities. BACKGROUND: Cultural background is important in how people perceive the effects of dementia and respond to them. To date there has been little research on the experiences of minority ethnic partners in the U.K. METHOD: Using a constructivist grounded theory approach data collection took place in London, England, over an 18-month period between 2007 and 2009. A total of 43 in-depth interviews were conducted with seven Greek Cypriot and six African Caribbean partners of people with dementia. FINDINGS: The outcomes of the study revealed partners of people with dementia engaged in an ongoing process of 'redefining relationships'. Greek Cypriot partners tended to emphasize family relationships whilst African Caribbean partners tended to view themselves primarily as an individual or as part of a couple. CONCLUSION: Increased understanding of how dementia is experienced by partners of people from specific ethnic groups with dementia can equip nurses to give culturally appropriate advice and support. The study findings suggest that ethnicity alone cannot account for individual responses to dementia in a partner, and therefore awareness of cultural factors needs to be balanced with sensitivity to the unique life experience and relationships of the individuals.

Survey of speech and language therapy provision for people with Parkinson's disease in the United Kingdom: patients' and carers' perspectives.

BACKGROUND: Communication and swallowing changes are prominent in Parkinson's disease, but there remains a lack of information regarding the experiences and expectations of people with Parkinson's disease in respect of speech-language therapy (SLT) services. AIMS: To conduct a survey of people with Parkinson's disease and their carers in the United Kingdom to elicit their views concerning communication and swallowing changes in Parkinson's disease and the support they envisage in helping with these changes. METHODS & PROCEDURES: A national survey utilizing a questionnaire developed for the project, accessible by people with Parkinson's disease in web-based, e-mail or paper forms. OUTCOMES & RESULTS: A total of 168 people with Parkinson's disease (median = 7 years since diagnosis, range = 0.5-30) and 47 carers who provided their impression of the experience of the PwPD responded. Of these 215, 92 (43%) had no contact with SLT services. In general those who had seen an SLT found it a positive experience. Pointers for improvement centred around timing, intensity, duration and access to SLT as well as issues around transfer and maintenance of gains outside of clinic and (lack of) attention to psychosocial dimensions. Availability of ongoing support as the situation evolved and access to SLT when it was needed were two prominent features desired of a responsive service. CONCLUSIONS & IMPLICATIONS: Responses suggest that when SLT is available it offers positive support, but respondents felt (re)access when and where SLT is needed could improve, as well as what aspects of swallowing and communication were addressed in assessment and therapy. We reflect on possible recommendations to address the challenges for SLT services in considering organization and content of provision.

National survey of speech and language therapy provision for people with Parkinson's disease in the United Kingdom: therapists' practices.

BACKGROUND: Communication and swallowing changes feature prominently in Parkinson's disease. People with Parkinson's disease appear under-represented in speech-language therapy clinics in the United Kingdom. The nature of the speech-language therapy services in the UK to people with Parkinson's disease has not been examined. AIMS: To ascertain the number of speech-language therapists in the UK who work with people with Parkinson's disease; to establish the nature of contacts in terms of caseloads, referral stages and routes, management practices, assessments and treatments employed; and to reflect on service provision in relation to published guidelines. METHODS & PROCEDURES: A questionnaire survey of speech-language therapists. OUTCOMES & RESULTS: A total of 185 speech-language therapists responded. They were treating a median of three (inter-quartile range (IQR) = 1-6) people with Parkinson's disease with a further median of five (IQR = 1-10) on review. The majority of contacts were for assessment and advice given, especially in later and earlier stages of Parkinson's disease. Typically, respondents offered a median of six sessions (IQR = 6-8) of treatment, each session lasting a median of 45 min (IQR = 45-60), delivered over a median period of 42 days (IQR = 28-56). Speech-language therapists worked in a variety of settings, predominantly hospital. They received referrals principally from medical specialities, from whom the majority had support. Referrals were perceived in general to be later in Parkinson's disease progression than desired. Assessment focused primarily on impairment measures, in contrast to a belief that therapy focus on activity and participation issues. Speech-language therapists were relatively confident in treating people with Parkinson's disease, but 75% wanted more training. CONCLUSIONS & IMPLICATIONS: Speech-language therapist services for people with Parkinson's disease in the UK are restricted on most dimensions. Management practices often do not match guideline suggestions. Consideration needs to be given to the training for, content of and delivery of speech-language therapy services for people with Parkinson's disease.

Strategies for implementing shared decision making in elective surgery by health care practitioners: A systematic review.

RATIONALE, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To summarize relevant international scientific evidence on strategies aimed at facilitating or improving health care practitioners' adoption of shared decision making in elective surgery. The review evaluated the effectiveness of these strategies and described the characteristics of identified strategies. METHOD: A systematic search of the literature was conducted up to March 2019. The review included interventions that targeted patients, health care practitioners, or health systems/organizations. Main outcomes were measures of decision process and decision outcomes. Two independent reviewers conducted study selection, assessed methodological quality and extracted data. RESULTS: Fifteen randomized controlled trials, one pseudo-randomized controlled trial, and four quasi-experimental studies were included in this review. The heterogeneity of interventions and the variability of outcomes used to measure the impact of these interventions precluded meta-analysis. All of the interventions included an educational component regarding the medical condition of interest and available treatment options and a supportive component to encourage patients to ask questions and involve themselves in the decision making. Published evidence on shared decision-making interventions in elective surgery is most prevalent in the breast cancer/endocrine and urology specialties, with most studies targeting their shared decision-making interventions at the patient population. The use of multiple media components within an intervention including interactive video appeared to improve patient satisfaction with the shared decision-making process. CONCLUSIONS: The use of well-developed educational information provided through interactive multimedia, computer or DVD based, may enhance the decision-making process. The evidence suggests that such multimedia can be used prior to the surgical consultation, presenting medical and surgical information relevant to the upcoming consultation. A decision and communication aid also appears to be an effective method to support the surgeon in patient participation and involvement in the decision-making process.

Supporting surgeons in patient-centred complex decision-making: a qualitative analysis of the impact of a perioperative physician clinic.

OBJECTIVE: Patients with comorbidities can be referred to a physician-led high-risk clinic for medical optimisation prior to elective surgery at the discretion of the surgical consultant, but the factors that influence this referral are not well understood. The aims of this study were to understand the factors that influence a surgeon's decision to refer a patient to the clinic, and how the clinic impacts on the management of complex patients. DESIGN: Qualitative study using theoretical thematic analysis to analyse transcribed semi-structured interviews. SETTING: Interviews were held in either the surgical consultant's private office or a quiet office/room in the hospital ward. PARTICIPANTS: Seven surgical consultants who were eligible to refer patients to the clinic. RESULTS: When discussing the factors that influence a referral to the clinic, all participants initially described the optimisation of comorbidities and would then discuss with examples the challenges with managing complex patients and communicating the risks involved with having surgery. When discussing the role of the clinic, two related subthemes were dominant and focused on the management of risk in complex patients. The participants valued the involvement of the clinic in the decision-making and communication of risks to the patient. CONCLUSIONS: The integration of the high-risk clinic in this study appears to offer additional value in supporting the decision-making process for the surgical team and patient beyond the clinical outcomes. The factors that influence a surgeon's decision to refer a patient to the clinic appear to be driven by the aim to manage the uncertainty and risk to the patient regarding surgery and it was seen as a strategy for managing difficult and complex cases.

Frailty in geriatric head and neck cancer: A contemporary review.

OBJECTIVE: To provide a summary of the current frailty literature relating to head and neck cancer. DATA SOURCES: Ovid MEDLINE, PubMed, Google Scholar. METHODS: A comprehensive review of the literature was performed from 2000 to 2017 using key words frailty, elderly, geriatric, surgery, otolaryngology, head and neck cancer. RESULTS: The aging population has led to an increased diagnosis of head and neck cancer in elderly patients. The prevalence of comorbidities, disabilities, geriatric syndromes and social issues can make treatment planning and management in this population challenging. Chronological age alone may not be the optimal approach to guiding treatment decisions, as there is marked heterogeneity amongst this age group. Individualization of treatment can be achieved by assessing for the presence of frailty, which has growing evidence as an important marker of health status in geriatric oncology. Frailty is a complex geriatric syndrome characterized by a state of increased vulnerability to stressors and is associated with morbidity, mortality, and treatment toxicity. Screening for frailty may provide an efficient method to identify those who would benefit from further assessment or pretreatment optimization, and to provide prognostic information to assist clinicians and patients in formulating the most ideal treatment plan for the elderly individual with head and neck cancer. CONCLUSIONS: Frailty has emerged as an important concept in geriatric oncology, with wide significance in head and neck cancer. Incorporating frailty assessments into clinical practice may provide otolaryngologists pertinent information regarding health status and outcomes leading to optimal care of the elderly cancer patient. Laryngoscope, 128:E416-E424, 2018.

Effectiveness of preoperative medical consultations by internal medicine physicians: a systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: Clinics have been established to provide preoperative medical consultations, and enable the anaesthetist and surgeon to deliver the best surgical outcome for patients. However, there is uncertainty regarding the effect of such clinics on surgical, in-hospital and long-term outcomes. A systematic review of the literature was conducted to determine the effectiveness of preoperative medical consultations by internal medicine physicians for patients listed for elective surgery. DESIGN: Systematic searches of MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PubMed, Current Contents and the NHS Centre for Reviews and Dissemination were conducted up to 30 April 2017. SETTING: Elective surgery. STUDY SELECTION: Randomised controlled trials and non-randomised comparative studies conducted in adults. OUTCOME MEASURES: Length of hospital stay, perioperative morbidity and mortality, costs and quality of life. RESULTS: The one randomised trial reported that preadmission preoperative assessment was more effective than the option of an inpatient medical assessment in reducing the frequency of unnecessary admissions with significantly fewer surgical cancellations following admission for surgery. A small reduction in length of stay in patients was also observed. The three non-randomised studies reported increased lengths of stay, costs and postoperative complications in patients who received preoperative assessment. The timing and delivery of the preoperative medical consultation in the intervention group differed across the included studies. CONCLUSION: Further research is required to inform the design and implementation of coordinated involvement of physicians and surgeons in the provision of care for high-risk surgical patients. A standardised approach to perioperative decision-making processes should be developed with a clear protocol or guideline for the assessment and management of surgical patients.

Strategies for implementing shared decision making in elective surgery by healthcare practitioners: a systematic review protocol.

REVIEW OBJECTIVES/QUESTIONS: The objectives of the review are to:Specifically, the review questions are.

A comparison of propensity score-based approaches to health service evaluation: a case study of a preoperative physician-led clinic for high-risk surgical patients.

RATIONALE, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: A physician-led clinic for the preoperative optimization and management of high-risk surgical patients was implemented in a South Australian public hospital in 2008. This study aimed to estimate the costs and effects of the clinic using a mixed retrospective and prospective observational study design. METHOD: Alternative propensity score estimation methods were applied to retrospective routinely collected administrative and clinical data, using weighted and matched cohorts. Supplementary survey-based prospective data were collected to inform the analysis of the retrospective data and reduce potential unmeasured confounding. RESULTS: Using weighted cohorts, clinic patients had a significantly longer mean length of stay and higher mean cost. With the matched cohorts, reducing the calliper width resulted in a shorter mean length of stay in the clinic group, but the costs remained significantly higher. The prospective data indicated potential unmeasured confounding in all analyses other than in the most tightly matched cohorts. CONCLUSIONS: The application of alternative propensity-based approaches to a large sample of retrospective data, supplemented with a smaller sample of prospective data, informed a pragmatic approach to reducing potential observed and unmeasured confounding in an evaluation of a physician-led preoperative clinic. The need to generate tightly matched cohorts to reduce the potential for unmeasured confounding indicates that significant uncertainty remains around the effects of the clinic. This study illustrates the value of mixed retrospective and prospective observational study designs but also underlines the need to prospectively plan for the evaluation of costs and effects alongside the implementation of significant service innovations.

An exploration of German and British physiotherapists' views on the effects of hippotherapy and their measurement.

Hippotherapy (Greek hippos = horse) is a specialised physiotherapy treatment that makes use of the horses' unique three-dimensional movement impulses at a walk to facilitate movement responses in patients sitting on the horse's back (Strauss, 2000). Despite a substantial body of anecdotal and clinical evidence for its benefits, research evidence for hippotherapy is sparse. This questionnaire survey was the first study in a series of investigations exploring the views of physiotherapists and people with cerebral palsy who use hippotherapy. These investigations, in turn, form the basis from which the authors will recommend outcome measures for individuals with cerebral palsy in a hippotherapy environment. This study aimed to: (a) establish the pattern of hippotherapy practice in Germany and the U.K.; (b) examine the perceived main effects of hippotherapy on people with cerebral palsy in Germany and the U.K.; and (c) investigate how these effects are being measured in both countries. The results highlighted considerable differences in how hippotherapy is practised in the U.K. compared with in Germany. In spite of this, the study revealed agreement among respondents on the overall perceived effects of hippotherapy on individuals with cerebral palsy, namely, the regulation of muscle tone, improvement of postural control and psychological benefits. The results also indicate scant use of outcome measures to evaluate these effects. The impact of these findings is discussed in the light of published research, and suggestions for further research are made.

Managing high-risk surgical patients: modifiable co-morbidities matter.

BACKGROUND: There are a subset of potentially modifiable co-morbidities that may be targeted in the preoperative phase with a view to optimizing control and improving post-operative outcomes. This study aims to estimate the effect of potentially modifiable co-morbidities on post-operative outcomes and to identify potential targets for preoperative management. METHODS: Retrospective data on hospital separations in South Australia were analyzed using multiple regression to estimate the association between nine potentially modifiable co-morbidities and length of stay, post-operative complications and in-hospital mortality. RESULTS: After adjusting for primary diagnosis, age, gender and other potential confounders, significant increases in length of stay and complications were recorded for eight and six of the nine modifiable co-morbidities, respectively. As examples, previous heart failure was associated with a 54% increase in length of stay and an odds ratio of 1.75 for complications. Asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease was associated with a 38% increase in length of stay and an odds ratio of 1.64 for complications. CONCLUSIONS: A set of potentially modifiable co-morbidities is associated with a range of poorer post-operative outcomes, relative to patients without those co-morbidities. There is a clinical rationale that outcomes will be worse in the subset of patients for whom such co-morbidities are poorly controlled, and that timely intervention to improve control in the period prior to surgery will improve post-operative outcomes. Further research is required on post-operative outcomes for patients with and without controlled co-morbidities and on the effects of timely intervention to improve control prior to surgery.

Sustainability of a pharmacist-driven pathway for osteoporosis-related fractures on an orthopaedic unit after a 5-year period.

OBJECTIVES: Diagnosis and management of osteoporosis in hospitals are poor. Effective medications for reducing fracture risk are often underutilised in hospital settings. Studies have shown that improvements in secondary prevention of osteoporosis can occur with the implementation of clinical pathways and are effective in improving the prescription for osteoporosis medications. We aimed to assess the long-term sustainability of the benefit of the osteoporosis pathway implemented at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Adelaide, Australia, in 2003. METHODS: An audit was performed to review the rate of prescription for osteoporosis therapy 5 years after the implementation of a pharmacist-driven osteoporosis pathway in patients presented with a minimal trauma fracture and admitted to the Department of Orthopaedics at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital. KEY FINDINGS: Our review of a 5-year period shows that the rate of prescription for osteoporosis therapy in this patient group is 95%. CONCLUSIONS: The pharmacist-driven osteoporosis pathway at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital has sustained the rate of prescription for osteoporosis therapy over a prolonged period of time.

Information in dementia care: sense making and a public health direction for the UK?

Providing information is a core focus of policy and practice in dementia care. Information is a vehicle through which people can be enabled or disabled, so it is essential that we ensure that information is available in a way that is accessible and relevant for people with dementia and that it enables personal aspiration and collective identity to be advanced in a way that is to the benefit of those living with dementia. People with dementia need information to support autonomy in making decisions and in acting on those decisions. Information must be provided in a way that is appropriate to the individual and to achieve that requires knowledge of the needs of that individual. However, maintaining autonomy includes, but involves much more than, the provision of information - others need to listen and hear their views and be prepared to act on them. As professionals, we must be aware that the (dementia) information we provide may disrupt the biographical narrative that people with dementia value. Thus, a person-centred approach encourages the sharing of knowledge and information. The (mis)use of information also impacts on the way that society disables, discriminates and applies barriers against people with disability.

Reframing risk management in dementia care through collaborative learning.

Risk management is a complex aspect of practice which can lead to an emphasis on maintaining physical safety, which impacts on the well-being of people with dementia. Education for practitioners in risk management is particularly challenging because of its conceptual nature and diverse perceptions of risk between and within professional groups. The practice development research reported here formed one part of a multisite study and contributed to developing a risk assessment and management framework for use by practitioners in partnership with people with dementia and their families. Practice development research uses learning theories in the process of the research, and in so doing its intent is to not only create new knowledge but to view the research process as also a process of learning for those involved. Twenty practitioners from varying professions participated in five Collaborative Learning Groups, each of at least 2 hours duration, which were held over a 7-month period. Data analysis highlighted contradictions in the care system and in the professional's intention to practice in a person-centred way. These were expressed through the themes of: Seeking Certainty; Making Judgements; Team Working; Managing Complexity; Gathering and Using Information.

Risk management dilemmas in dementia care: an organizational survey in three UK countries.

Aims and objectives. The overall project aimed to understand the variability of the construction of risk in dementia care from the perspective of the person with dementia, family carers and practitioners with the intention of developing negotiated partnerships in risk management. This paper focuses on the objective of identifying the understandings of risk by practitioners. Background. Risk management can result in a 'safety first' approach to care practices, but this may be disempowering for people with dementia. Design. This paper describes the results of the first stage of the study: a survey to service managers or equivalent in health, social and voluntary sector care organizations in three countries of the UK. Methods. Data from this stage was collection by postal questionnaire (n = 46). Results. Risk was portrayed as a multidimensional concept and clustered around three themes: (1) Risk and Independence, (2) Risk and Resource, and (3) Organizational Risk Management. Conclusions. Very wide understandings of risk are identifiable, ranging from avoidance of physical harm through to managed risk taking to improve quality of life, and to an appreciation of the impact of organizational and professional patterns of behaviour resulting in harm to the person with dementia. Relevance to clinical practice. Obtaining information about the perspectives of others may help to illuminate some of the dilemmas experienced by staff in this study, and the development of risk assessment frameworks may assist staff to resolve some of these.