Conectar
To assess the prevalence of malnutrition risk, especially of undernutrition, among patients admitted to the Internal Medicine and Orthopaedics wards at Michele and Pietro Ferrero Hospital, Italy, using the Nutritional Risk Screening 2002 (NRS-2002) tool, administered by trained nursing staff, and to evaluate the adherence to related care interventions.
Cross-sectional study.
We included 248 adult patients, screened by trained nurses for nutritional risk within 48 h of admission using the NRS-2002 tool, which takes into account patients' Body Mass Index, recent weight loss, reduced dietary intake, and disease severity. Information on nursing interventions was also collected.
We identified 36 subjects at risk of malnutrition with NRS ≥ 3. Prevalence was higher in Internal Medicine, reflecting differences in patient characteristics and clinical complexity. Patients at risk were older, had longer hospital stays, and higher risks of falls and pressure sores. Nursing interventions such as proper meal selection, administration of hypercaloric-hyperproteic supplements, and completion of food diary were implemented in most cases, although adherence was not complete. Post-training questionnaire showed that, overall, nurses integrated nutritional screening into practice, but areas for improvement were identified.
Results confirmed the high prevalence of malnutrition risk in hospitalised patients, especially in Internal Medicine. Proper training and empowerment can enable nurses to effectively identify and manage patients at intermediate risk of malnutrition.
Nurses can play key roles in hospital nutritional care by facilitating early identification and appropriate management of patients at malnutrition risk.
Malnutrition is very common among inpatients. Trained and empowered nurses can perform nutritional screening at admission to identify and early manage patients at risk, thereby helping to prevent increased morbidity, mortality and healthcare costs.
STROBE guidelines.
None.
This study aimed to estimate reductions in travel-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, travel time and distance resulting from a telemedicine service for patients with chronic conditions, and to assess its potential to contribute to more equitable access to specialised care in Northeast Brazil.
Cross-sectional study.
Primary healthcare units in the Northeast region of Brazil.
Patients between birth and 104 years of age with chronic conditions who received video-based teleconsultations between June 2022 and November 2023.
The primary outcome was the reduction in travel-related carbon emissions due to avoided in-person referrals. Secondary outcomes included travel time and travel distance savings. Round-trip distances between primary healthcare units and referral centres were estimated using geolocation data. CO2 emissions were calculated using the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol adapted to Brazil (Brazilian GHG Protocol Programme), focusing on Scope 3 emissions from patient travel.
A total of 4642 teleconsultations were conducted with 4106 patients. Of these, 4021 (86.6%) avoided in-person referrals, resulting in estimated savings of 226 900 miles in travel distance and 488 584 min in travel time. The estimated CO2 emissions avoided totalled 21 593 kg (21 930 kg CO2 equivalent), with a mean of 5.37 kg (SD±5.5) per teleconsultation (5.4 kg CO2 equivalent ; SD±5.5). Greater travel distance savings were observed among patients living in municipalities with lower Municipal Human Development Index (mean 92.3±104.2 miles vs 17.3±8.4 miles; p
Telemedicine use in Northeast Brazil significantly reduced patient travel, leading to substantial savings in CO2 emissions. These savings were more pronounced for patients in smaller, less developed municipalities. By reducing the need for travel, telemedicine can improve access to healthcare for remote or underserved populations, while also supporting environmental sustainability.
FreshRSS 