Video-telehealth to support clinical assessment and management of acutely unwell older people in Residential Aged Care: a pre-post intervention study.

Background: Older people living in Residential Aged Care (RAC) are at high risk of clinical deterioration. Telehealth has the potential to provide timely, patient-centred care where transfer to hospital can be a burden and avoided. The extent to which video telehealth is superior to other forms of telecommunication and its impact on management of acutely unwell residents in aged care facilities has not been explored previously.

Evaluation of a safe medication strategy intervention for people with dementia with an unplanned admission: Results from the Safe Medication Strategy Dementia Study.

Objective: To evaluate whether a safe medication strategy compared with usual care, provided to people with dementia during an unplanned admission, reduces readmissions to hospital and re-presentation to emergency departments within three months.

Methods: A prospective, controlled pre-/post-trial conducted at two regional hospitals in New South Wales, Australia.

Results: No treatment effect was seen for time to first re-presentation or readmission within three months (P = .

Evaluation of Carer Strain and Carer Coping with Medications for People with Dementia after Discharge: Results from the SMS Dementia Study.

This study reports carer strain and coping with medications for people with dementia with an unplanned admission to hospital, and it evaluates the impact of a safe medication intervention on carer coping and carer strain. This was a quasi-experimental pre/post-controlled trial that included a survey of carers about managing medications for people with dementia after discharge. For 88 carers who completed surveys, 33% were concerned about managing medications, and 40% reported difficulties with medication management, including resistive behaviours by people with dementia.