Nursing home leaders' perception of factors influencing the reporting of elder abuse and neglect: a qualitative study
Journal of Health Organization and Management
ISSN: 1477-7266
Article publication date: 6 August 2020
Issue publication date: 15 September 2020
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to explore the factors that influence the reporting of adverse events related to elder abuse and neglect in nursing homes from nursing home leaders' perspectives. Good leadership requires in-depth knowledge of the care and service provided and the ability to identify and address problems that can arise in clinical practice.
Design/methodology/approach
A qualitative explorative design with data triangulation was used. The sample consisted of 43 participants from two levels of nursing home leadership, representing six municipalities and 21 nursing homes in Norway. Focus group interviews were undertaken with 28 ward leaders and individual interviews with 15 nursing home directors. The constant comparative method was used for the analyses.
Findings
Both ward leaders and nursing home directors described formal and informal ways of obtaining information related to elder abuse and neglect. There were differences between their perceptions of the feasibility of obtaining formal reports about abuse in the nursing home. Three main categories of influencing factors emerged: (1) organisation structural factors, (2) cultural factors and (3) abuse severity factors. A main finding is that in its present form, the Norwegian adverse event reporting system is not designed to detect abuse and neglect.
Originality/value
This paper provides an in-depth understanding of patient safety and factors related to reporting elder abuse in nursing homes in Norway.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to express their gratitude to the participants for sharing their experience and thoughts on the topic of barriers and enablers to report elder abuse and neglect in nursing homes. Thanks to Anja Botngård and Stine Borgen Lund for contributing to data collection as the co-moderators in the focus groups.Funding: The study is funded by the Research Council of Norway (NFR), project number: 262697.
Citation
Myhre, J., Malmedal, W.K., Saga, S., Ostaszkiewicz, J. and Nakrem, S. (2020), "Nursing home leaders' perception of factors influencing the reporting of elder abuse and neglect: a qualitative study", Journal of Health Organization and Management, Vol. 34 No. 6, pp. 655-671. https://doi.org/10.1108/JHOM-02-2020-0031
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited