Managing Resident Symptoms Requires Collaboration: Findings from UPLIFT Trial

A keystone of delivering quality, comprehensive care to people with dementia is accurately identifying symptoms that may affect their quality of life or contribute to challenging behaviors.

For residents with dementia living in the nursing home, this process commonly occurs through the assessment and observation by the nursing home staff providing care; however, for some residents, these symptoms are also observed by their loved ones during visitation.

Results from the UPLIFT Clinical Trial, conducted by Probari’s CEO, Kathleen Unroe, MD, and her colleagues, showed that there is often discordance between facility staff and the resident's family regarding symptom perception.

In this study, family members and staff were asked to rate symptoms experienced by residents, all of whom had moderate to advanced dementia, over the past 30 days. Consistently, family members rated the frequency and intensity of symptoms higher, including the presence of pain, anxiety, and shortness of breath.

The UPLIFT trial study also found that family and staff were more aligned with symptom ratings when the resident had more advanced cognitive impairment, potentially indicating greater communication between staff and families regarding resident care and experience.

This highlights the need to talk with family members about the symptoms they observe and their perceptions of these symptoms to promote collaboration that leads to higher-quality care for this vulnerable resident population.

Resources:

Discordance in Ratings of Symptoms Experienced by Nursing Home Residents With Cognitive Impairment