Guidance Aims to Protect PD Patients from Harm During Hospitalization

Recommendations to improve the hospitalization experience of patients with Parkinson disease (PD), released last year by the Parkinson’s Foundation, aim to ease the increased risk of preventable harm for the hundreds of thousands of people with PD hospitalized annually in the United States.

The Parkinson’s Foundation Hospital Care Recommendations report centers on five specific goals:

• the ordering of all PD medications in a custom fashion according to the patient’s at-home regimen;
• the administration of all PD medications within 15 minutes of the at-home regimen;
• the elimination of potentially harmful medication events, with an emphasis on dopamine-blocking, pain, and sedative agents;
• the mobilization of patients 3 times daily when clinically appropriate and, if necessary, under supervision; and
• dysphagia screening within 24 hours and, if needed, the use of measures to minimize the risk of aspiration pneumonia.

One of three health systems nationwide to collaborate with the foundation to create the report, Hackensack Meridian Health (HMH), Edisen, New Jersey, recently announced efforts to further implement the recommendations across the health network.

“Through the support of the Parkinson’s Foundation, we are collaborating with our clinical leaders across our network to expand a best-practice protocol that focuses on timely patient medication management to avoid patient complications for PD patients in the emergency department or admitted to a hospital within the HMH network,” said Hooman Azmi, MD, of the Hackensack University Medical Center and Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine.

The protocol provides for the development of flags to alert providers to PD diagnoses and for customized, time-based carbidopa/levodopa medication schedules. Additionally, a nursing care plan focusing on PD will supplement education and support efforts to reduce risks during hospitalization.

“We want all our patients, including those with PD, to feel confident when they walk into one of our emergency departments or are admitted to one of our hospitals,” said Dana Dolce, APN, neuromodulation program manager.

Reference

Hackensack Meridian Health, part of select Parkinson’s Foundation study group, implementing changes to better care for patients. News release. Hackensack Meridian Health; February 22, 2024. Accessed March 6, 2024. https://www.hackensackmeridianhealth.org/en/News/2024/02/22/HMH-Part-of-Select-Parkinsons-Foundation-Study-Group