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Abstract
Enhancing the effectiveness of the community and aged care workforce to prevent malnutrition and functional decline is important in reducing hospital and aged care facility demand. The aim of this systematic literature review was to investigate the impact of nutrition-related interventions delivered to informal carers and non-clinical community care workers on malnutrition-related health outcomes of community-dwelling older adults (65 years). Intervention studies were searched for, using six electronic databases for English-language publications from January 1980 to May 2012. Nine studies were eligible for inclusion. The strength and quality of the evidence was moderate (six studies with level II intervention evidence, five with positive quality). Types of interventions used were highly varied. The majority of interventions were delivered to informal carers (five studies), with three of these interventions also involving older adult care recipients. Five interventions were targeted at identifying, preventing and/or treating malnutrition specifically (two positive quality, three neutral quality, n=2368). As a result of these targeted interventions, nutritional status improved or stabilized (two positive quality, two neutral quality, n=2333). No study reported an improvement in functional status but two successfully prevented further decline in their participants (two neutral quality, n=1097). Interventions targeted at identifying, preventing and/or treating malnutrition were able to improve or prevent decline in nutritional and functional status, without increasing informal carer burden. The findings of this review support the involvement of non-clinical care workers and informal carers as part of the nutritional care team for community-dwelling older adults.
Original language | English |
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Article number | 114 |
Pages (from-to) | 15 |
Journal | Nutrition and Dietetics |
Volume | 70 |
Issue number | S1 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - May 2013 |
Externally published | Yes |
Event | Dietitians Association of Australia 30th National Conference - National Convention Centre, Canberra, Australia Duration: 23 May 2013 → 25 May 2013 Conference number: 30th |
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Dive into the research topics of 'Are informal carers and community care workers effective in managing malnutrition in the older adult community? A systematic review of current evidence'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.Related Projects
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Ageing Nutrition: Research Across the Care Continuum
Marshall, S., Isenring, E., Hugo, C., Agarwal, E., Teleni, L., Reidlinger, D., Campbell, K., Van der Meij, B. & Tang, X.
1/01/14 → …
Project: Research
Related Research Outputs
- 1 Article
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Are informal carers and community care workers effective in managing malnutrition in the older adult community? A systematic review of current evidence
Marshall, S., Bauer, J., Capra, S. & Isenring, E., 2013, In: Journal of Nutrition, Health and Aging. 17, 8, p. 645-651 7 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Open AccessFile34 Citations (Scopus)204 Downloads (Pure)