National study on acceptance by Japanese nursing homes of patients with feeding tubes

Abstract

Aim: This study describes the acceptance of patients with feeding tubes in nursing homes for the elderly. Methods: We sent questionnaires to 1,438 nursing homes in 2006-7 asking how many patients with feeding tubes the nursing homes had and how many new patients with feeding tubes they would accept in the future. Results: The response rate was 63.6%. We analyzed the data of 735 nursing homes. The median range (25-75%) of the number of patients, patients accepted, and total number of patients currently resident was determined. The percentage of tube feedings to total beds in those categories was 8.0% (range 4.0-13.3), 5.0% (0-10.0), and 13.3% (8.0-23.8), respectively. Whereas 6% of the nursing homes had no limits on acceptance of patients with feeding tubes, 27.2% of the nursing homes replied that they would no longer accept such patients. Factors associated with restricted acceptance included nurse responses (odds ratio (OR) 0.54, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.30-0.95), a facility with over 100 beds (OR 2.14, 95% CI 1.10-4.17), and no current patients with feeding tubes (OR 4.19, 95% CI 2.36-7.43). Conclusion: One quarter of nursing homes for the elderly in Japan replied that they would no longer accept patients with feeding tubes. More nurses than other professionals replied that they would accept patients with feeding tubes. Larger nursing homes were less likely to accept tube-feeing patients. Furthermore, nursing homes with no tube-feeding patients were unwilling to accept such patients.