AMONG
HOSPITALIZED PATIENTS, disease-associated malnutrition is a common and
widespread problem. Alarmingly, malnutrition or its risk occurs in as many as
50% of patients admitted to hospitals in the United States and around the
world. Yet, malnutrition is often overlooked and undertreated in hospital
settings. In fact, some patients experience worsening of their nutritional
status while hospitalized—resulting from common hospital routines (traditional
preparation for surgery, missed mealtimes for medical procedures, and NPO (nil
per os) orders, insufficient hospital staffing or education about nutrition
care, and patients' disease-related barriers to food intake (disease-related
anorexia, too tired to eat, or feeding difficulties). Older adults are
particularly vulnerable to undernutrition or specific nutrient deficiencies
because they often have diseases and disabilities that limit dietary intake.
Malnutrition
has negative impacts on patients and the health care system, leading to more
complications, slowed recovery, and higher costs of care. Study results show
that malnourished hospital patients, compared with their adequately nourished
peers, are more likely to experience pressure ulcers, post surgical infections, falls
and are at greater risk for death. These adverse outcomes contribute to the
excessive financial burden on our health care system in the form of costly
complications, longer hospital stays, and more frequent readmission. Nutrition
screening and interventions (e.g., oral nutritional supplements [ONS]) have
proven effective for improving patient outcomes and reducing overall costs of
care for patients who are malnourished or at risk for malnutrition. For
example, several studies of hospitalized patients showed that nutrition
screening and assessment, when followed by intervention as needed, could
shorten length of stay (LOS) by at least 2 days.
Hospital
records of nearly 20 000 patients were evaluated retrospectively. The age range
was from 18 to 111 years, with an overall mean age of 59 years, and there were
slightly more women than men
For
more details: https://worldnursing.pulsusconference.com/
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