Nova Scotia First to Test New Health Assessment Tool

Nova Scotia will be the first province in Atlantic Canada to test a new way of assessing long-term care residents, Health Minister Jamie Muir announced today.

"We are testing a resident assessment tool that should be able to provide nursing homes with the data they need to better identify the type of care their residents' need," said Mr. Muir at a health conference in Halifax. "The data has the potential to help nursing homes in their efforts to ensure care plans are appropriately designed. In addition, it is anticipated that the data will give the department the information it needs to better manage and deliver services in the long-term care sector."

The new, standardized assessment tool -- called the RAI 2.0 -- is used after a resident is admitted to a nursing home. The tool combines nursing questionnaires and a software package that interprets the data.

The tool has many potential benefits, including the ability to provide data to help nursing homes to:

• ensure residents' needs are appropriately defined and that care plans are accurate.
• ensure care plans are established on evidence-based information.
• assist with the evaluation of resident care plans.
• monitor residents' progress so care plans can be adjusted accordingly.

In addition, the data has the potential to help government allocate resources to nursing homes based on the level of care being provided to residents.

The demonstration project announced today will allow Nova Scotians to field test the new approach to determine its benefits in the province's long-term care sector.

It is expected that the project will begin in the new year. Participating facilities will be selected by the end of January. The goal is to have a mix of facilities of different sizes and from different regions.

The cost of implementing the project is estimated at $115,000. The funding is allocated in this year's health budget, part of the government's promise to explore new information systems.

InterRai, which developed the assessment tool, is a non-profit consortium of more than 30 university-based researchers from around the world.