[Behavioral disorders in nursing home residents. 147 consecutive referrals to an interdisciplinary team of consulting specialists].
During a period of 22 months 147 consecutive residents with behavioural disturbances from 80% of the Copenhagen nursing homes were referred to a visiting team of consulting specialists. Each resident was evaluated clinically, and data were recorded in a database. The conditions thought to represent the underlying etiologies were dementia (79%), delirium (28%) and depression (35%). The most commonly observed behavioural symptoms were aggressiveness, vocally disruptive behavior and non-aggressive psychomotor symptoms. The most common interventions suggested by the team were further diagnostic evaluations, adjustment of pharmaceutical treatment, using the life history of the resident as a reference for behaviour management, and psychological behavior management. There is a need for increased focus on systematic diagnosis and treatment of behavioural disorders, observed in nursing homes, which often have multifactorial etiology.
Philipsen
M
M
Neurologisk afdeling, H:S Rigshospitalet, København.
Rosenbeck-Hansen
J V
JV
Waldemar
G
G
D000368:Aged; D000374:Aggression; D001526:Behavioral Symptoms; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000628:therapy; D003704:Dementia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000628:therapy; D003718:Denmark; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D005852:Geriatric Psychiatry; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009735:Nursing Homes; D010348:Patient Care Team; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012017:Referral and Consultation