RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Effects of a Multidisciplinary Care Program on Disability, Autonomy, and Nursing Needs in Subjects Recovering From Acute Respiratory Failure in a Chronic Ventilator Facility JF Respiratory Care FD American Association for Respiratory Care SP respcare.03030 DO 10.4187/respcare.03030 A1 Michele Vitacca A1 Mara Paneroni A1 Roberta Peroni A1 Luca Barbano A1 Valmira Dodaj A1 Giancarlo Piaggi A1 Fabio Vanoglio A1 Alberto Luisa A1 Amerigo Giordano A1 Piero Ceriana YR 2014 UL http://rc.rcjournal.com/content/early/2014/09/02/respcare.03030.abstract AB BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to analyze the effects of a multidisciplinary program carried out in a chronic ventilator facility on disability, autonomy, and nursing needs of patients after a prolonged ICU stay. Secondary outcome measures were survival, weaning rate, chronic ventilator facility stay, and discharge destination. METHODS: Multidisciplinary assessment, clinical stabilization, weaning attempts, and a new Disabled Patients Autonomy Planning tool to assess daily care needs were investigated in 240 subjects in a chronic ventilator facility (52 subjects after cardiovascular surgery, 60 subjects with acute respiratory failure, 71 subjects with COPD, and 57 subjects with neurological disease). RESULTS: At admission, nursing needs, disability, and autonomy differed according to diagnosis (P < .001); weaned subjects had greater nursing needs (P < .001) and disability (P = .0014) than unweaned subjects. During the stay, 13.8% of the subjects died irrespective of diagnosis (P = .12); 47% (P < .001) were weaned with significant differences (P <.007) by diagnosis. In the 207 surviving subjects, nursing needs increased as disability increased (R = -0.59, P < .001) and autonomy decreased (R = -0.66, P < .001); disability and autonomy were inter-related (R = 0.61, P < .001). Oxygen saturation, hypercapnia, dyspnea, disability, autonomy, and nursing needs significantly improved (all, P < .001). Fifty-nine percent of the subjects were discharged home. Subjects discharged to nursing homes presented mainly neurological diseases, being more disabled and less autonomous, with higher nursing needs (all, P < .04). Mechanical ventilation use and tracheostomy increased the probability of being discharged to a nursing home (odds ratio [OR] of 1.84, P = .0439; OR 2.47, P = .003, respectively). Mortality was higher in subjects who were ventilated (OR 8.44, P < .001), male (OR 2.64, P = .01), elderly (P < .001), or malnourished (P = .01) and in subjects with low autonomy (P < .001), greater nursing needs (P = .002), and more severe disabilities (P = .039). CONCLUSIONS: A specialized tailored multidisciplinary program in subjects after an ICU stay contributed to recovery from disability, autonomy, and fewer nursing needs irrespective of diagnosis. Subjects discharged to a nursing home were the most severely disabled.