THE PREVALENCE OF AGITATION AND BRAIN INJURY IN SKILLED NURSING FACILITIES - A SURVEY

All skilled nursing facilities (SNF) in the state of Connecticut were surveyed to determine the number of residents with a primary diagnosis of brain injury, the incidence of agitation among these residents, an d management strategies utilized for agitation in these residents, inc luding consultation with brain injury specialists. One hundred and six ty-two, or 64%, of the SNF responded to the survey, and reported on 14 0 individuals with a primary diagnosis of brain injury. These individu als were residing in 39, or 24%, of the 162 facilities. Forty-five per cent of these 39 facilities had brain-injured residents who met the d efinition of agitation presented in the survey. Management of agitatio n was equally distributed between environmental manipulation, formal b ehaviour care plans and medications. The availability of specialist co nsultation was variable and included physiatrists (38%), psychiatrists (67%), neurologists (41%), and psychologists (36%). This survey study defined the prevalence of brain-injured residents in Connecticut's SN F, and examined management strategies for agitation in this patient po pulation.