There have been no changes recommended to this point regarding our advice to implement mandatory malnutrition screening as a quality indicator for all residential aged care services .
Through linking hospitalisation records to people in residential aged care for the period 2014 / 15 to 2018 / 19 , the Royal Commission determined that 1.5-1.9 % of residents were admitted to hospital with a primary or secondary diagnosis of weight loss or malnutrition .
... the Royal Commission determined that 1.5-
1.9 % of residents were admitted to hospital with a primary or secondary diagnosis of weight loss or malnutrition .
Researchers noted that this is likely less than the overall malnutrition prevalence , which has been repeatedly reported around 50 %. Leaving unplanned weight loss as the nutrition quality indicator is worrying , as this results in residents who are not at nutritional risk but lose weight on successive occasions receiving specialist dietetic care , while other malnourished residents are not referred to a dietitian at all . Continued advocacy may see this overturned in future reviews of the quality indicator program .
© Dietitian Connection 21 Infuse | October 2021