Reducing Avoidable Hospital Transfers From Nursing Homes in Austria: Project Outline and Baseline Results.

Hospital transfers from nursing homes (NHs) are frequent, burdensome for residents, and often avoidable. The evidence regarding the effectiveness of interventions to reduce avoidable transfers is limited, and most projects focus on nurses' knowledge and skills. In the present project, interventions focusing on nurses and physicians are integrated, elaborated, and implemented in 17 NHs.

[From the nursing home to hospital and back again… A mixed methods study on hospital transfers from nursing homes].

Hospital transfers from nursing homes are frequent, costly, often preventable, and can have negative effects on the residents' health. The present study investigated the current situation in Carinthia (Austria) regarding the characteristics of relocated nursing home residents, the proportion of avoidable transfers, the consequences of relocation from the physicians' and nurses' perspectives and ways for improving nursing home care. Retrospectively, the documentations of a regional hospital (N=4149), a rescue service (N=10754), and a social insurance agency (N=7051) were analysed; qualitative interviews with physicians (N=25) and nursing administrators (N=16) were conducted.

[Cancer pain from the nurses' perspective--findings from Austria].

The present study addresses the issue of cancer pain from the perspective of Austrian nurses. By the means of a standardised questionnaire 332 nurses (79 percent female, 63 percent with age < 40) were asked about causes and triggers of cancer pain, patients' burden of pain, used analgesics and their side effects, and the authority by whom they want to be informed about an own malignant disease. The respondents mentioned a wide range of causes, triggers and multipliers of cancer pain.