[Alcohol and drug misuse of the elderly in health care facilities]

Abstract

Objective: A nationwide representative survey was conducted in residential care facilities and facilities offering care for the elderly in their homes (home care facilities) with the aim to estimate the rate of alcohol and drug misuse among this population and to evaluate the way in which nursing staff deal with the problem.

Method: A total of 5000 randomly selected facilities were contacted with a 2-page questionnaire. Reliable data were obtained from 550 residential care facilities and from 436 home care facilities.

Results: According to the investigated facilities, the mean rate of misuse among the elderly was 14%. Nearly all facilities acknowledge the necessity to react to these facts, but only a quarter of them considered their staff to be sufficiently trained. 38.4% of the residential care facilities and 26.9% of the home care facilities have a concept on how to react to misuse problems. Addiction services are rarely contacted.

Conclusions: The prevalence of alcohol and drug misuse among the elderly in health care facilities is high compared to the same age cohort of the total population. The lack of networking between facilities for the elderly and addiction services is remarkable.