(P64) Factors Associated with Care Interactions Among Nursing Home Residents

Introduction/

Objective: The quality of care interactions play a role in resident quality of life and psychological well-being among NH residents living with dementia. Care interactions are influenced by resident demographics, resident characteristics, and community characteristics. Limited research has tested a model of resident characteristics and community characteristics that relate to care interactions. The purpose of this study was to test to test a model of the resident and community factors that are associated with quality of care interactions among NH residents living with dementia. It was hypothesized that resident age, gender, race, pain, comorbidities, quality of life, resistiveness to care, function, cognition, community profit status, overall community star rating, community size, and staffing star rating would be directly and/or indirectly associated with quality of care interactions.

Design/Methodology: This was a secondary data analysis using baseline data from the Evidence Integration Triangle for Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (EIT-4-BPSD) intervention study. The sample included 553 residents with dementia from 55 NH facilities. Structural equation modeling was used to test the proposed model. Descriptive characteristics were used to describe the sample.

Results: The results showed that the final model with significant paths only had a poor fit to the data (χ^2/df = 10.79, CFI = .57, TLI = .15, NFI = .57, RMSEA = .13). However, the findings indicated that comorbidities, pain, profit-status, and overall community star rating were significantly associated with quality of care interactions.

Conclusion/

Discussion: The key takeaways include: 1) how long-term care staff and providers can identify the risk factors that are linked to poorer quality interactions; and 2) how long-term care staff can improve care interactions for residents living with dementia through suggested interventions. Managing comorbidities, managing pain, and supporting community-wide resources to promote better care interactions will likely help increase the frequency of positive care interactions in future work.