Resources of Residents for Potential Transition from Long-Term Care to Community

Lina Spirgienė¹, Pirkko Elina Routasalo², Jūratė Macijauskienė³

¹Department of Nursing and Care, Medical Academy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Lithuania, ²University of Helsinki, Finland, ³Department of Geriatrics, Medical Academy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Lithuania

Key words: residents; long-term care; potential transition to community; resources.

Summary. Background and Objective. Transition from long-term care to the community can have positive effects on residents’ health and quality of life and promote the feelings of happiness, safety, and independence. The aim of this study was to examine residents’ resources for potential transition to the community after residing in long-term care facilities.

Material and Methods. The study was conducted in 8 long-term care institutions for older persons of Kaunas county. The study population comprised 252 residents. The items contained in the interRAI Long-Term Care Facility assessment instrument were used to evaluate a consistent positive outlook, social activities, and discharge potential. Cognitive impairment was measured using the Cognitive Performance Scale. Activities of daily living were measured using the Activities of Daily Living Hierarchy Scale.

Results. More than 10% of the residents exhibited no cognitive impairment. One-third of the residents preferred to transition back to the community from their long-term care facility. Two-thirds expressed that they had familiar surroundings, which could be assumed to increase their feeling of safety at home. Social activities prevalent among residents included taking care of plants and walking outdoors. About 40% of the residents were physically independent in the activities of daily living. In spite of these resources, no residents were involved in a discharge process due to the lack of established nursing and social care services and transitional care plans.

Conclusions. With well-organized community services, some residents in long-term care facilities may have enough resources to live in the community.

Correspondence to L. Spirgienė, Department of Nursing and Care, Medical Academy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Eivenių 2, 50161 Kaunas, Lithuania. E-mail: lina.spirgiene@gmail.com

Received 1 July 2013, accepted 30 December 2013