Centre for Ageing, Neurosciences and the Humanities, Tallaght University Hospital, Dublin, D24 NR0A, Ireland.
Department of Speech and Language Therapy, Tallaght University Hospital, Dublin, D24 NR0A, Ireland.
Ir J Med Sci. 2020 Feb;189(1):295-297. doi: 10.1007/s11845-019-02061-0. Epub 2019 Jul 22.
Oropharyngeal dysphagia (OPD) is a common but under-recognized problem among older residents in nursing homes. If not detected and properly managed, it is a risk factor for failure to thrive and aspiration pneumonia. Discharge to nursing home from hospital may provide an opportunity for detection and subsequent management.
To assess the extent of transfer of communication of swallow disorders in patients newly discharged to nursing homes from a university teaching hospital and catalogue recommendations suggested at discharge.
University teaching hospital METHOD: Speech and language therapy (SLT) consultation notes of referrals from 100 consecutive patients discharged to nursing homes for the first time are reviewed for presence of a swallow disorder. The discharge documentation was then assessed to determine transfer recommendations for management of swallow disorders.
Fifty-three patients had been referred to SLT for suspected OPD during hospitalization. At time of discharge, 35 (35%) continued to present with OPD and swallow recommendations were made as part of the management plan. An SLT report was transmitted to the nursing home in 80% of these cases.
OPD is present at discharge in over one-third of patients newly discharged to nursing home following a hospital admission, and this may be an under-estimate. This is significant in terms of planning of future care of management in nursing homes. It is important that the syndrome is duly noted in transfer documentation and that appropriate multi-disciplinary support arranged for residents in nursing homes with OPD.
口咽吞咽障碍（OPD）是养老院老年居民中常见但未被充分认识的问题。如果未被发现并得到适当管理，它是生长不良和吸入性肺炎的危险因素。从医院出院到养老院可能是发现和随后进行管理的机会。
评估从大学教学医院新出院到养老院的患者吞咽障碍沟通转移的程度，并对出院时提出的建议进行分类。
大学教学医院
回顾了 100 例首次出院到养老院的连续患者的言语治疗（SLT）转诊咨询记录，以确定是否存在吞咽障碍。然后评估出院文件，以确定吞咽障碍管理的转移建议。
53 例患者在住院期间因疑似 OPD 被转诊至 SLT。在出院时，35 例（35%）仍存在 OPD，并作为管理计划的一部分提出了吞咽建议。在这些情况下，有 80%的病例向养老院传输了 SLT 报告。
在因住院而新出院到养老院的患者中，超过三分之一的患者在出院时存在 OPD，这可能是一个低估。这对于规划养老院未来的护理和管理非常重要。在转诊文件中适当记录该综合征并为患有 OPD 的养老院居民安排适当的多学科支持非常重要。
