Research Findings

Improving Patient Safety in Nursing Homes: A Resource List for Users of the AHRQ Nursing Home Survey on Patient Safety Culture

Challenges in Synthesizing and Interpreting the Evidence from a Systematic Review of Multifactorial Interventions to Prevent Functional Decline in Older Adults

Home Health Care Patients and Safety Hazards in the Home: Preliminary Findings

Articles from AHRQ's Research Activities Newsletter

Research Activities, January 2013
Being a caregiver linked to poor health behaviors among baby boomers
Antipsychotic choices in nursing homes partly influenced by nursing home's prescribing culture
Computerized clinical decision support produces only modest savings for nursing home residents with impaired kidney function

Research Activities, December 2012:
Restorative care appears to lower emergency department visits and falls by nursing home residents
Care processes in nursing home and residential long-term care settings may benefit people with dementia
Review looks at outcomes of patients at different types of long-term care facilities
New tool released that improves the safety of care for nursing home residents

Research Activities, October 2012:
Alcohol may be misused by residents in assisted living places

Research Activities, September 2012:
Conventional and atypical antipsychotic drugs show differing safety risks among older nursing home residents

Research Activities, August 2012:
Discharge to skilled nursing facilities after a heart attack or heart failure explains little of variation in hospital readmissions
Bowel incontinence and other clinical factors predict the development of pressure ulcers
Introduction of hospice services by nursing homes does not significantly affect nursing assistant staffing

Research Activities, July 2012:
Many surgeons do not discuss advance directives with their patients before surgery

Research Activities, May 2012:
Extended use of medications to prevent blood clots may benefit patients after major orthopedic surgery

Research Activities, April 2012:
Elders and families find it difficult to interpret data from passive sensors that help monitor elderly activity
Lower flu vaccination rates for black nursing home residents a cause for concern

Research Activities, March 2012:
Preventing pressure ulcers in the home requires creative solutions by nurses
Medicaid nursing home reimbursement affects nursing homes' approach to end-of-life care

Research Activities, February 2012:
Study finds potentially suboptimal use of antidepressants for residents in Veterans Affairs nursing homes

Research Activities, January 2012:
State regulation of care quality is costly to nursing homes
Clinical informatics monitoring tool helps reduce adverse drug events in nursing home settings

Research Activities, December 2011:
Human factors challenges in home health care
Three Publications Highlight Human Factors Research
Financial performance has modest effect on nursing home quality improvement
Evidence lacking on transition-of-care programs for heart attack and stroke patients after hospital discharge

Research Activities, September 2011:
Diagnosing and treating depression gets better in nursing homes but some disparities remain

Research Activities, August 2011:
High performance on quality measures linked to financial benefits for nursing homes

Research Activities, July 2011:
Certain factors linked to risk of early death of intensive care patients after discharge

Research Activities, June 2011:
Nursing homes more often voluntarily terminate from Medicare and Medicaid programs in States with strong quality regulations

Research Activities, March 2011:
Anemia is common among nursing home residents and affects their physical functioning
More nursing home residents are receiving hospice care

Research Activities, February 2011:
Nurse-facilitated guided care for elders and their caregivers leads to improved perceptions of quality of care
Use of physician extenders associated with increase in antidepressant prescribing in nursing homes

Research Activities, January 2011:
Public reporting on quality of care has definite, if modest, effects on nursing home care improvement
Public report cards prompt nursing homes to spend more on clinical services
Review looks at approaches to improve drug prescribing in nursing homes

Research Activities, December 2010:
Patients with inherited cancer syndrome need help with decisions and long-term support from their surgeons

Research Activities, November 2010:
Stroke recurrence rates vary by U.S. region

Research Activities, September 2010:
Use of physical restraint in nursing homes cut by half in 8 years

Research Activities, June 2010:
Nursing homes using more agency staff have lower quality of care
Nursing home physicians and nurses struggle with communication barriers

Research Activities, May 2010:
Opioid-naïve nursing home residents are commonly prescribed long-acting opioids, a potentially dangerous practice

Research Activities, April 2010:
Making nursing home quality reports public leads to improved posthospitalization care
A guided care approach helps curb health care costs of elderly patients with chronic conditions
Caregiver dissatisfaction affects outpatient care for the elderly with dementia
Nursing home users of information technology start to see its benefits

Research Activities, March 2010:
Octogenarians fare well after aortic valve replacements
Nursing home studies focus on the costs of staff turnover rates and selective admission of patients

Research Activities, February 2010:
Medicare reimbursement changes lessen regional disparities for home health services

Research Activities, January 2010:
Medicare payment caps on home care add to the family caregiving burden, especially among lower-income families
Antibiotic resistance is prevalent and varied in long-term-care facilities
Computerized decisionmaking systems improve physician prescribing for long-term-care residents