title: Audit about Medical Decision: Data Transmission Concerning Patients with Dementia Entering French Nursing Homes Does Not Confirm the Diagnosis.
abstract: Background. Dementia was affecting 855.000 patients in France in 2007. Lanmeur's rural hospital population was representative of the French nursing home's population. The followup was assumed by local GPs, which is also usual care in France for nursing homes. The study looked at clinical and paraclinical data transmitted at the institutionalization time of patients suffering from dementia. Aim. showing that admission letters did allow establishing a diagnosis of dementia for the GPs. Method. we included all patients with dementia at the time of institutionalization between July 2000 and July 2007. We searched in the admission letters for 25 criteria extracted from the French guidelines for dementia and Alzheimer disease diagnosis (multiple cross-sectional analysis per year). Results. 293 patients were included. The median number of diagnostic criteria present in the letters of admission is 1 (first quartile: zero, third quartile: 4, and maximum: 12). Conclusions. the data in admission letters did not allow the diagnosis of dementia according to the French guidelines. We know that dementia is underchecked and undertreated in France according to the same guidelines. What consequences did this lack of basic data give on motivation for treatment and recurrent diagnosis process for GPs? This has to be evaluated.
authors.affiliation: Département de Médecine Générale, Université de Bretagne Occidentale, 29238 Brest, France.
authors.forename: Cadier
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Sébastien
authors.forename: Hummers-Pradier
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Eva
authors.forename: Barais
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Marie
authors.forename: Barraine
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Pierre
authors.forename: Chiron
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Benoit
authors.forename: Le Floch
authors.initials: le F
authors.lastname: Bernard
authors.forename: Nabbe
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Patrice
authors.forename: Le Reste
authors.initials: le R
authors.lastname: Jean-Yves