App-Delivered Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia Among Patients with Comorbid Musculoskeletal Complaints and Insomnia Referred to 4-Week Inpatient Multimodal Rehabilitation: Protocol for a Randomized Clinical Trial.

Background: Insomnia is prevalent among patients receiving treatment for long-term musculoskeletal complaints in inpatient rehabilitation settings. Cognitive-behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) is effective for improving sleep quality in patients with pain, but a lack of therapists often limits the capacity to use this therapy in rehabilitation programs. The aim of this randomized clinical trial (RCT) is to evaluate the effectiveness of app-delivered CBT-I adjunct to inpatient multimodal rehabilitation for individuals with comorbid musculoskeletal complaints and insomnia, compared with rehabilitation (usual care) only. Methods: This RCT has two parallel arms: 1) inpatient multimodal rehabilitation and 2) app-delivered CBT-I adjunct to inpatient multimodal rehabilitation. Patients referred to Unicare Helsefort (Norway) with long-term chronic musculoskeletal complaints are invited to the study. Eligible and consenting participants will be randomized to the intervention and usual care at a ratio of 2:1. Assessments will be carried out at baseline (prior to randomization), 6 weeks (at the end of rehabilitation), 3 months (primary outcome), as well as 6 and 12 months after the rehabilitation. The primary outcome is insomnia severity measured at 3 months. Secondary outcomes include pain intensity, health-related quality of life, fatigue, physical function, work ability, expectations about sick leave length, sick leave, and prescribed medication. Exploratory analyses are planned to identify moderators and mediators of the effect of the app-delivered intervention. Discussion: This RCT will provide novel knowledge about the effectiveness of app-delivered CBT-I as an adjunct to usual care among patients participating in inpatient multimodal pain rehabilitation. Regardless of the results from this trial, the results will improve our understanding of the utility of dCBT-I in the field of rehabilitation and the importance of adding sleep therapy to this patient group. Trial Registration: This trial was prospectively registered in ClinicalTrials.gov October 10, 2022 (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT05572697).

Toileting difficulties in older people with and without dementia receiving formal in-home care-A longitudinal study.

AIM: To estimate the prevalence of toileting difficulties over time among older people (≥70 years) with and without dementia receiving formal in-home care at baseline and to explore whether dementia at baseline was associated with toileting difficulties at the last assessment when adjusting for relevant covariates. We hypothesize that those with dementia have a higher prevalence and that baseline dementia is associated with toileting difficulties at last follow-up. DESIGN: A longitudinal observational study with three assessments over 36 months. Older people (≥70 years) from 19 Norwegian municipalities with in-home care needs were included. The participants and their next of kin were interviewed. METHOD: In total, 1,001 (68% women) persons with a mean (SD) age 83.4 (5.7) years participated at baseline. Toileting difficulties were assessed using Lawton and Brody's Physical Self-Maintenance Scale and Individual Nursing and Care Statistics. Information on physical comorbidity, number of prescribed drugs, cognitive function and formal care given was included. Dementia was diagnosed based on all information gathered. RESULTS: At all time points, toileting difficulties were more prevalent in people with than without dementia. In adjusted analyses, dementia at baseline was associated with toileting difficulties at the last assessment. Nursing home admission was associated with increased odds for toileting difficulties.

Factors associated with alcohol consumption and prescribed drugs with addiction potential among older women and men - the Nord-Trøndelag health study (HUNT2 and HUNT3), Norway, a population-based longitudinal study.

BACKGROUND: Little is known about factors associated with alcohol consumption and use of drugs with addiction potential in older adults. The aim of this study was to explore the association between socio-demographic variables, physical and mental health and the later (11 years) use of frequent drinking, prescribed drugs with addiction potential and the possible combination of frequent drinking and being prescribed drugs with addiction potential in older adults (≥ 65 years). METHODS: In this longitudinal study, we used data from two surveys of the Nord-Trøndelag Health Study (HUNT2 1995-1997 and HUNT3 2006-2008), a population based study in Norway. We totally included 10,656 individuals (5683 women) aged 54 years and older when they participated in HUNT2. Frequent drinking was defined as drinking alcohol 4 days or more per week. Data on prescribed drugs with addiction potential were drawn from the Norwegian Prescription Database. Drugs with addiction potential were defined as at least one prescription of benzodiazepines, z-hypnotics or opioids during one year for a minimum of two consecutive years between 2005 and 2009. RESULTS: The typical frequent drinker in HUNT3 was younger, more educated, lived in urban areas, and reported smoking and drinking frequently in HUNT2 compared to the non-frequent drinker in HUNT3. The typical user of prescribed drugs with addiction potential in HUNT3 was an older woman who smoked and was in poor health, suffered from anxiety, had been hospitalized in the last 5 years and used anxiety or sleep medication every week or more often in HUNT2. The typical individual in HUNT3 with the possible combination of frequent drinking and being prescribed drugs with addiction potential had more education, smoked, drank frequently and used anxiety or sleep medication in HUNT2. CONCLUSION: Individuals who were identified as frequent drinkers in HUNT2 were more likely to be frequent drinkers in HUNT3, and to have the possible combination of frequent drinking and being prescribed drugs with addiction potential in HUNT3. Health care professionals need to be aware of use of alcohol among older adults using drugs with addiction potential.

Mortality in older adults with frequent alcohol consumption and use of drugs with addiction potential - The Nord Trøndelag Health Study 2006-2008 (HUNT3), Norway, a population-based study.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to investigate whether frequent drinking, use of drugs with addiction potential and the possible combination of frequent drinking and use of prescribed drugs with addiction potential were associated with all-cause mortality in older adults. METHODS: We used data from the Nord-Trøndelag Health Study (HUNT3 2006-08), a population-based study in Norway. A total of 11,545 (6,084 women) individuals 65 years and older at baseline participated. We assessed frequent drinking (≥ 4 days a week), occasional drinking (i.e. a few times a year), never drinking and non-drinking in the last year. Drugs with addiction potential were defined as at least one prescription of benzodiazepines, z-hypnotics or opioids during one year for a minimum of two consecutive years between 2005 and 2009. This information was drawn from the Norwegian Prescription Database. The main outcome was all-cause mortality with information drawn from the Norwegian Cause of Death Registry. Follow-up continued until death or latest at 31 December 2013. Logistic regression analyses were used to investigate all-cause mortality since date of study entry and exact age at time of death was unknown. RESULTS: The adjusted logistic regression analyses showed that frequent drinking was not associated with all-cause mortality compared to occasional drinking. Men who reported to be never drinkers and non-drinkers in the last year had higher odds of mortality compared to those who drank occasionally. Use of prescribed drugs with addiction potential was associated with increased mortality in men, but not in women. No association was found between the possible combination of frequent drinking and use of prescribed drugs with addiction potential and mortality. CONCLUSION: Neither frequent drinking nor the possible combination of frequent drinking and use of prescribed drugs with addiction potential were associated with all-cause mortality in older women and men. Use of prescribed drugs with addiction potential was associated with higher odds of mortality in men. This finding should lead to more caution in prescribing drugs with addiction potential to this group.

Inclination towards research and the pursuit of a research career among medical students: an international cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Involvement of clinicians in biomedical research is imperative for the future of healthcare. Several factors influence clinicians' inclination towards research: the medical school experience, exposure to research article reading and writing, and knowledge of research. This cohort study follows up medical students at time of graduation to explore changes in their inclination towards research and pursuing a research career compared to their inclination at time of entry into medical school. METHODS: Students from medical schools in six different countries were enrolled in their first year of school and followed-up upon graduation in their final year. Students answered the same self-administered questionnaire at both time points. Changes in inclination towards research and pursuing a research career were assessed. Factors correlated with these changes were analysed. RESULTS: Of the 777 medical students who responded to the study questionnaire at entry into medical school, 332 (42.7%) completed the follow-up survey. Among these 332 students, there was no significant increase in inclination towards research or pursuing a research career over the course of their medical schooling. Students from a United States based school, in contrast to those from schools other countries, were more likely to report having research role models to guide them (51.5% vs. 0%-26.4%) and to have published in a peer-reviewed journal (75.7% vs. 8.9%-45%). Absence of a role model was significantly associated with a decrease in inclination towards research, while an increased desire to learn more about statistics was significantly associated with an increase in inclination towards pursuing a research career. CONCLUSION: Most medical students did not experience changes in their inclination towards research or pursuing a research career over the course of their medical schooling. Factors that increased their inclination to undertaking research or pursuing a research career were availability of a good role model, and a good knowledge of both the research process and the analytical tools required.

Use of alcohol and drugs with addiction potential among older women and men in a population-based study. The Nord-Trøndelag Health Study 2006-2008 (HUNT3).

BACKGROUND: Little is known about the consumption habits of older adults in Norway with respect to alcohol and the use of drugs with addiction potential, such as benzodiazepines, z-hypnotics and opioids, among regular drinkers. We studied the prevalence of self-reported consumption of alcohol on a regular basis in community-living older men and women (≥ 65 years). Furthermore, we investigated the prevalence of dispensed prescribed drugs with addiction potential in older men and women who were regular drinkers. METHODS: We used data from the Nord-Trøndelag Health Study 2006-2008 (HUNT3). Of 12,361 older adults in the HUNT3 study, 11,545 had answered the alcohol consumption item and were included in our study. Regular drinkers were defined as consuming alcohol one or more days a week. Data on dispensed drugs with addiction potential were drawn from the Norwegian Prescription Database. Addiction potential was defined as at least one prescription for benzodiazepines, z-hypnotics or opioids during one year for a minimum of two consecutive years. RESULTS: In total 28.2% of older Norwegian adults were regular drinkers. Men in the study were more likely to be regular drinkers than women. Drugs with addiction potential were used by 32.4% of participants, and were more commonly used by women. Nearly 12% of participants used benzodiazepines, 19% z-hypnotics and 12.4% opioids. Among regular drinkers, 29% used drugs with addiction potential, which was also more common among women. Adjusted for age, gender and living situation, use of z-hypnotics was associated with regular alcohol intake, while use of opioids was associated with no regular alcohol intake. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of the use of drugs with addiction potential was high in a Norwegian population of older adults who reported regular consumption of alcohol. Strategies should be developed to reduce or prevent alcohol consumption among older adults who use drugs with addiction potential.

What characteristics predispose to continence in nursing home residents?: a population-based cross-sectional study.

AIMS: To compare characteristics of both continent and incontinent residents in Nursing Homes (NHs) and to explore what predicts continence and severity of incontinence. METHODS: A population-based cross-sectional study was performed in nursing homes in one Norwegian municipality. Registered nurses filled in a questionnaire on behalf of the patients. RESULTS: We found that 25.4% of the NH residents were continent, 31.8% had urinary incontinence alone, 2.6% had fecal incontinence alone and 40.2% had double incontinence. Continent residents were characterized by being in short-term care, shorter stay in NH, less cognitive and physical impairment, less Parkinson's disease, stroke, constipation, and less diarrhea and more independence in activities of daily living (ADL). Residents with fecal incontinence alone were characterized by more diarrhea, less cognitive impairment and less dependency in ADL such as feeding and grooming. Residents with urinary incontinence alone were characterized by having some degree of ADL dependency, less diarrhea, and less diabetes. Residents with double incontinence were characterized by being in long-term care, a longer length of stay in NH, cognitive impairment, stroke, constipation, diarrhea, and dependency in ADL. Severity of incontinence was associated with dependency in ADL and cognitive impairment, diarrhea, length of stay in NH and lower age. CONCLUSIONS: About 25% of NH residents were continent. Double incontinence and urinary incontinence only were prevalent conditions in NHs, while FI alone was rarer. With the exception of diarrhea as a cause of FI, it appears that FI alone, UI alone, and DI may have common causes and development.

Bowel problem management among nursing home residents: a mixed methods study.

BACKGROUND: Bowel problems such as constipation, diarrhoea and faecal incontinence (FI) are prevalent conditions among nursing home residents and little is known about nursing management. This study aimed to elucidate how Norwegian registered nurses (RNs) manage bowel problems among nursing home residents. METHODS: A mixed methods approach was used combining quantitative data from a population-based cross-sectional survey and qualitative data from a focus group interview. In the cross sectional part of the study 27 of 28 nursing homes in one Norwegian municipality participated. Residents were included if they, at the time of data collection, had been a resident in a nursing home for more than three weeks or had prior stays of more than four weeks during the last six months. Residents were excluded from the study if they were younger than 65 years or had a stoma (N = 980 after exclusions). RNs filled in a questionnaire for residents regarding FI, constipation, diarrhoea, and treatments/interventions. In the focus group interview, 8 RNs participated. The focus group interview used an interview guide that included six open-ended questions. RESULTS: Pad use (88.9%) and fixed toilet schedules (38.6%) were the most commonly used interventions for residents with FI. In addition, the qualitative data showed that controlled emptying of the bowels with laxatives and/or enemas was common. Common interventions for residents with constipation were laxatives (66.2%) and enemas (47%), dietary interventions (7.3%) and manual emptying of feces (6.3%). In addition, the qualitative data showed that the RNs also used fixed toilet schedules for residents with constipation. Interventions for residents with diarrhoea were Loperamide (18.3%) and dietary interventions (20.1%). RNs described bowel care management as challenging due to limited time and resources. Consequently, compromises were a part of their working strategies. CONCLUSIONS: Constipation was considered to be the main focus of bowel management. Emptying the residents' bowels was the aim of nursing intervention. FI was mainly treated passively with pads and interventions for residents with diarrhoea were limited. The RNs prioritized routine tasks in the nursing homes due to limited resources, and thereby compromising with the resident's need for individualized bowel care.

[Pre-hospital observation as an alternative to emergency hospitalisation]. / Prehospital observasjon som alternativ til akuttinnleggelse.

BACKGROUND: Pre-hospital observation beds in community care centres have for many years served as an alternative to hospitalisation in rural districts of Norway. The article presents the use of observation beds associated with the Fosen A&E centre. MATERIAL AND METHOD: A retrospective review of records of patients who had contacted Fosen A&E centre during the period 21 August 2006-21 August 2009 was undertaken. Patient characteristics and clinical pathways were registered, including admissions to hospital or to an observation bed, as well as re-admissions. Ever since observation beds were first introduced, clear inclusion and exclusion criteria have been applied with regard to the allocation of patients to observation beds. RESULTS: Altogether 8027 patients had been in direct contact with an A&E doctor, and 2342 were admitted, of whom 77% to hospital and 23% to an observation bed. Of the 530 patients admitted to an observation bed, 55% were 70 years or older. Of these, 68% were discharged to their homes within 36 hours, 17% were transferred to hospital, and the remainder received further treatment in a local rehabilitation unit or nursing home. The rate of readmission to observation beds or hospital amounted to 4% among those who had been discharged after no more than three days, and 18% among those discharged after 3-28 days. INTERPRETATION: A low number of readmissions may indicate that the use of observation beds is an alternative to hospitalisation.

Chloramphenicol eye drops in the treatment of conditions indicative of maxillary sinusitis.

BACKGROUND: Our own clinical experience of general practice over the last 15 years has indicated that chloramphenicol eye drops may have a favourable effect on many patients troubled by symptoms indicative of acute maxillary sinusitis. We wanted to conduct a pilot study to test whether this observation could be verified. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Treatment with chloramphenicol eye drops or systemic peroral antibiotics was tested on patients with symptoms indicative of acute maxillary sinusitis. The patients were randomised to two groups, one of which received systemic peroral antibiotics, the other received chloramphenicol eye drops. RESULTS: A total of 33 patients were included in the trial--27 women and six men--15 of whom were randomised to the tablet group and 18 of whom were randomised to the chloramphenicol group. The patients who were treated with tablets experienced clear improvement after an average of 5.0 days, while patients who were treated with chloramphenicol eye drops, experienced improvement after 3.7 days (p = 0.047). Of the patients in the chloramphenicol group, 14 described improvement within three days, while this applied to only five patients in the tablet group. INTERPRETATION: Treatment with chloramphenicol eye drops appears to represent a treatment option for some patients with symptoms indicative of acute maxillary sinusitis. In the pilot study, the period of treatment before symptoms improved was shorter in patients who were given eye drops than in patients who were given systemic peroral antibiotics. These promising results give grounds to undertake studies on a larger scale.

Prevalence and correlates of fecal incontinence among nursing home residents: a population-based cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Fecal incontinence is highly prevalent among nursing home residents. Previous nursing home studies have identified co-morbidity associated with fecal incontinence, but as this population is increasingly old and frail, we wanted to see if the rate of fecal incontinence had increased and to investigate correlates of fecal incontinence further. METHODS: Cross-sectional study of the entire nursing home population in one Norwegian municipality. Registered nurses filled in a questionnaire for all residents in the municipality (980 residents aged ≥65). Statistical methods used are descriptive statistics, binary logistic regression and multivariable logistic regression. RESULTS: The response rate of the study was 90.3%. The prevalence of fecal incontinence was 42.3%. In multivariable analysis of FI, residents with diarrhea (OR 7.33, CI 4.39-12.24), urinary incontinence (OR 2.77, CI 1.73-4.42) and dementia (OR 2.17, CI 1.28-3.68) had higher odds of having fecal incontinence compared to those without the condition. Residents residing in a nursing home between 4-5 years had higher odds of having fecal incontinence compared to residents who had stayed under a year (OR 2.65, CI 1.20-5.85). Residents with deficiency in feeding (2.17, CI 1.26-3.71), dressing (OR 4.03, CI 1.39-11.65), toilet use (OR 7.37, CI 2.65-20.44) and mobility (OR 2.54, CI 1.07-6.00) had higher odds of having fecal incontinence compared to residents without deficiencies in activities of daily living (ADL). Needing help for transfer between bed and chair was a protective factor for fecal incontinence compared to residents who transferred independently (OR 0.49, CI 0.26-0.91). CONCLUSIONS: Fecal incontinence is a prevalent condition in the nursing home population and is associated with ADL decline, frailty, diarrhea and quality of care. This knowledge is important for staff in nursing home in order to provide the best treatment and care for residents with fecal incontinence.

Ambiguities: residents' experience of 'nursing home as my home'.

BACKGROUND: Residential care in nursing homes continues to be necessary for those individuals who are no longer able to live at home. Uncovering what nursing home residents' view as quality of care in nursing homes will help further understanding of how best to provide high quality, person-centred care. AIM: To describe residents' experiences of living in a nursing home related to quality of care. DESIGN: The study utilises a descriptive exploratory design. METHOD: In-depth interviews were undertaken with 15 residents who were not cognitively impaired, aged 65 and over and living in one of four nursing homes. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed by categorising of meaning. RESULTS: Residents perceived the nursing home as their home, but at the same time not 'a home'. This essential ambiguity created the tension from which the categories of perceptions of quality emerged. Four main categories of quality of care experience were identified: 'Being at home in a nursing home', 'Paying the price for 24-hour care', 'Personal habits and institutional routines', and 'Meaningful activities for a meaningful day'. CONCLUSIONS: Ambiguities concerning the nursing home as a home and place to live, a social environment in which the residents experience most of their social life and the institution where professional health service is provided were uncovered. High-quality care was when ambiguities were managed well and a home could be created within the institution. Implication for practice. Achieving quality care in nursing homes requires reconciling the ambiguities of the nursing home as a home. This implies helping residents to create a private home distinct from the professional home, allowing residents' personal habits to guide institutional routines and supporting meaningful activities. Using these resident developed quality indicators is an important step in improving nursing home services.

Effect of physical training on urinary incontinence: a randomized parallel group trial in nursing homes.

BACKGROUND: Residents in nursing homes (NHs) are often frail older persons who have impaired physical activity. Urinary incontinence (UI) is a common complaint for residents in NHs. Reduced functional ability and residence in NHs are documented to be risk factors for UI. OBJECTIVE: To investigate if an individualized training program designed to improve activity of daily living (ADL) and physical capacity among residents in nursing homes has any impact on UI. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This randomized controlled trial was a substudy of a Nordic multicenter study. Participants had to be >65 years, have stayed in the NH for more than 3 months and in need of assistance in at least one ADL. A total of 98 residents were randomly allocated to either a training group (n = 48) or a control group (n = 50) after baseline registrations. The training program lasted for 3 months and included accommodated physical activity and ADL training. Personal treatment goals were elicited for each subject. The control group received their usual care. The main outcome measure was UI as measured by a 24-hour pad-weighing test. There was no statistically significant difference between the groups on this measure at baseline (P = 0.15). Changes were calculated from baseline to 3 months after the end of the intervention. RESULTS: Altogether, 68 participants were included in the analysis, 35 in the intervention group and 33 in the control group. The average age was 84.3 years. The 3 months' postintervention adjusted mean difference between groups according to amount of leakage was 191 g (P = 0.03). This result was statistically significant after adjusting for baseline level, age, sex, and functional status. The leakage increased in residents not receiving the experimental intervention, while UI in the training group showed improvement. CONCLUSION: The intervention group had significant better results compared with the control group after an individualized training program designed to improve ADL and physical capacity. Further studies are needed to evaluate the effect of a goal-oriented physical training program toward NH residents UI complaints.

Quality of care in Norwegian nursing homes - typology of family perceptions.

AIM AND OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to elucidate the understandings and beliefs about quality held by family members of residents of Norwegian nursing homes. The objective reported in the study considers how family member judge factors that enhance or hamper high care quality. BACKGROUND: The percentage of those who will require care in a nursing home some time before the end of their lives will increase dramatically in the next 20 years. Therefore, anticipating this pressure to expand nursing home availability, it is urgent that these services are developed from a keen understanding of what creates the best value. Care quality from the family's perspective is just one piece of the nursing home experience that must be understood for optimal value in care to be realised. DESIGN: Qualitative methodology. METHOD: Three focus group interviews; purposive sampling was used to recruit the 16 family members of residents in nursing homes. RESULTS: Three domains emerged that served as anchors for a typology of family perceptions of the quality care continuum: resident contentment, suitability of staff and environmental context. Each domain was developed with categories describing high- to low-quality markers, which were then clarified by enhancing and hindering factors. CONCLUSIONS: This typology provides a family perspective framework that may be useful to nursing leadership at all levels of the nursing home organisation to identify important quality of care strengths as well as markers of poor care. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Overall, the typology is offered to expand nurses' understanding of quality, both practically and conceptually, to provide the best value in nursing care.

Residents' experiences of interpersonal factors in nursing home care: a qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: With life expectancy lengthening, the number of those who will require care in a nursing home will increase dramatically in the next 20 years. Nursing home residents are frail older adults with complex needs, dependent on advanced nursing care. Long-term residents in nursing homes have long-term relationships with the nurses, which require a unique approach to the interpersonal aspects of nursing care. Understanding what is experienced as care quality, including quality of interpersonal processes, requires insight into the residents' perspectives for best value in care to be realized. OBJECTIVE: Main objective was to describe the nursing home residents' experience with direct nursing care, related to the interpersonal aspects of quality of care. DESIGN: A descriptive, exploratory design was used. SETTINGS: Four public municipal nursing homes in Norway with long-term residents were purposely selected for the study. PARTICIPANTS: Fifteen mentally lucid residents were included. The inclusion criteria were aged 65 and over, being a resident of the nursing home for one month or longer, and physical and mental capacity to participate in the interview. METHOD: In-depth interviews with the residents were performed. The transcribed interviews were analyzed using meaning categorizing. RESULTS: The residents emphasized the importance of nurses acknowledging their individual needs, which included need for general and specialized care, health promotion and prevention of complications, and prioritizing the individuals. The challenging balance between self-determination and dependency, the altered role from homeowner to resident, and feelings of indignity and depreciation of social status were key issues in which the residents perceived that their integrity was at risk in the patient-nurse interaction and care. Psychosocial well-being was a major issue, and the residents expressed an important role of the nursing staff helping them to balance the need for social contact and to be alone, and preserving a social network. CONCLUSIONS: Quality nursing care in nursing home implies a balanced, individual approach to medical, physical and psychosocial care, including interpersonal aspects of care. The interpersonal relationship between resident and nurse implies long-term commitment, reciprocal relationship on a personal level and interpersonal competence of the nurses to understand each resident's needs.

Nursing sensitive quality indicators for nursing home care: international review of literature, policy and practice.

OBJECTIVES: To review nursing sensitive indicators used for nursing home care across seven nations with similar elder care (USA, Australia, Norway, New Zealand, England, Sweden and Denmark), and to evaluate their validity. DESIGN: Systematic search in the literature and other sources to find descriptions of development and validity testing of national quality indicators. DATA SOURCES: Papers from scientific databases, relevant websites, additional papers and reports, and personal communication with experts in the field. The material was included if it contributed to the description of each country's processes in defining nursing sensitive quality indicators for nursing home care, and the main focus was use, developing and/or testing of quality. REVIEW METHODS: An overview of each country's utilization of nursing sensitive quality indicators was obtained. The evidence for the validity in development and testing procedures was analyzed using a set of evaluation criteria. RESULTS: All countries, except Sweden, have nationally standardized assessment of the patient before admission to the nursing home. There is large variation in the way these data collection tools were developed and how the data is used. Only the USA has systematically developed quality indicators on the basis of resident assessments. Twenty-three indicators used nationally in USA, thirteen in Australia, four in Norway, three in New Zealand and three in England were selected for review, and were evaluated for their validity as described in the literature. All selected indicators had satisfactory face validity, and for the twenty-three indicators used in the USA there was evidence for reliability testing. None of the quality indicators met all the criteria for validity. Evidence that the quality indicators can demonstrate meaningful differences in care and that the information can be extracted with minimal extra efforts was not found. Thresholds for high or low quality were determined only for the US quality indicators. CONCLUSIONS: There are concerns about the validity and reliability of nursing sensitive quality indicators for nursing home care. The indicator development is sparsely documented. It is recommended that the development of quality indicators follows a sound process and that extensive empirical testing of the indicators is done.

The prevalence and correlates of urinary tract symptoms in Norwegian men: the HUNT study.

OBJECTIVES: To estimate the prevalence of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) by severity (using the International Prostate Symptom Score, IPSS) in a population-based study of men aged > or = 20 years, and to assess the association between putative risk factors and the presence of moderate to severe LUTS. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Between 1995 and 1997, LUTS data were collected from 21 694 male residents aged > or = 20 years in Nord Trøndelag County in Norway, using the IPSS; from the IPSS (score 0-35) LUTS was defined as a score of > or = 8, indicating moderate to severe symptoms. We estimated the prevalence of LUTS and used logistic regression analysis to study lifestyle and anthropometric factors, and comorbidity related to LUTS. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of moderate to severe LUTS was 15.8% (13.2% moderate and 2.6% severe). The prevalence of LUTS increased strongly with age, from approximately 5% among men aged < 40 years to > 30% when aged > or = 70 years. Factors positively associated with an increased risk of moderate and severe LUTS were anthropometric (body mass index and waist hip ratio) and lifestyle factors (alcohol consumption and smoking), as well as comorbid conditions, including diabetes, history of stroke, muscle complaints and osteoarthritis. CONCLUSION: The findings from this population-based study suggest that the prevalence of LUTS among men aged > or = 20 years may be lower than previously estimated. Although LUTS may be viewed as an inevitable consequence of ageing, it appears to be exacerbated by lifestyle factors and comorbid conditions.

Validation of a simple patient questionnaire to assist self-detection of overactive bladder. A study in general practice.

OBJECTIVE: To develop and validate a simple patient questionnaire for the detection of overactive bladder (OAB). DESIGN: An open, non-randomized multicentre study. SETTING: A pilot study (n = 133) was conducted to bring forward five questions from initially 14 questions, for detection of OAB. These five questions were subject to further validation in the main study (n =520). SUBJECTS: 531 adults responding to a newspaper advertisement regarding symptoms of OAB and patients seeing a physician for other reasons were attending 28 general practitioners. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Agreement rate, sensitivity, and specificity. RESULTS: The agreement rate between the patients' own diagnosis based on the patient questionnaire, and the physicians' diagnosis based on medical history, urine analysis, and micturition chart, was 0.78 (kappa =0.89). Sensitivity and specificity were 0.98 and 0.90, respectively. CONCLUSION: The validated questionnaire may become a useful tool to decide whether a patient has overactive bladder. The questionnaire corresponds well with the physicians' diagnosis.

A 10-year follow-up of urinary and fecal incontinence among the oldest old in the community: the Canadian Study of Health and Aging.

Urinary incontinence is common in the elderly. The epidemiology of fecal and double (urinary and fecal) incontinence is less known. The Canadian Study of Health and Aging (CSHA) is a national study of elderly living in the community at baseline (n = 8,949) and interviewed in 1991-1992, 1996, and 2001. Using data from the CSHA, we report the prevalence of urinary, fecal, and double incontinence in each wave and the cumulative incidence between waves and investigate the predictors of urinary and fecal incontinence. Urinary incontinence increased rapidly in old age, being almost twice as high in women as in men. Fecal and double incontinence were less common, but also increased rapidly with age. In women, parity showed a positive relationship with (prevalent) urinary incontinence. In men, diabetes was a risk factor for urinary and fecal incontinence. We conclude that urinary, fecal, and double incontinence increase rapidly with age and that inquiry about incontinence should be part of routine medical and nursing assessment of all elderly.