Healthy North Coast has an ongoing commitment to supporting care for residents of Residential Aged Care Homes (RACHs).
The Aged Care and Living Well Team at Healthy North Coast are working with four RACHs to pilot a clinical toolkit aimed at enhancing the management of deteriorating or unwell residents.
In collaboration with Geriatric Care Australia and local Aged Care Nurse Practitioners, a suite of clinical practice tools has been developed to guide Registered Nurses (RNs) in the management of unwell residents.
This clinical toolkit is inclusive of the Deteriorating Resident Triage Tool (DRTT), a Resident Goals of Care Directive and an after-hours plan.
The DRTT is a comprehensive clinical guidance tool, which will ensure a consistent, evidence-based approach to the assessment, triage and management of acutely unwell residents. The tool provides clinical guidance, particularly in the after-hours period when clinical advice is limited, to systematically guide RACH RNs through appropriate assessment and triage of common symptoms, escalation principles, and best-practice nursing assessments and interventions.
Additionally, a resident My Goals of Care tool has been developed to accompany an Advance Care Plan, to enhance person-centred care, by allowing residents and caregivers to consider their preferred treatments in the event of an acute deterioration in health.
The pilot program is intended to demonstrate how the toolkit can improve the confidence of clinical staff in RACHs, improve resident experience, reduce unnecessary hospital presentations and support a more integrated approach by the sector.
For enquiries, or to express interest in viewing either tools, please email Bron McCrae [email protected], Ashleigh Childs [email protected], or for general practices, talk with your Primary Health Coordinator.
