title: Nursing home admissions: the effect of a multidisciplinary assessment team on the frequency of admission approvals.
abstract: In a study of nursing home applicants in the Lower North Shore Area of Sydney, the assessed requirement for nursing home care is compared with the Department of Community Services and Health's NH5 approval rate. A multidisciplinary team decided that only 62.6 per cent of 246 nursing home applicants required nursing home admission whereas 98.4 per cent had their applications approved by the Department. The findings suggest that by providing multidisciplinary assessment for nursing home applicants, the previously high approval rates for nursing home admission can be lowered and thus may reduce the number of inappropriate admissions that occur. However, the extent to which this reduction can be maintained will depend on how effective the alternative care options are in preventing or delaying nursing home admission.
authors.affiliation: Rehabilitation and Geriatric Service, Royal North Shore Hospital, St. Leonards.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Quartararo
authors.forename: T J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: O'Neill
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001315:Australia; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006707:Homes for the Aged; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009735:Nursing Homes; D010343:Patient Admission; D010348:Patient Care Team