There are nearly 1.5 million older adults residing in nursing homes (NH) across the United States. Reducing avoidable hospitalizations among vulnerable NH residents has become a national priority. Estimates suggest more than $14 billion of Medicare funding is spent annually on hospitalizations for this vulnerable population. The most common causes of avoidable hospitalizations are conditions of septicemia, pneumonia, congestive heart failure, and urinary tract infections. Experts identify that NHs have limited capacity for early illness detection and/or prevention to avoid the need for hospitalization. A such, it is vital that NHs improve their capacity to identify and treat acute illness in their residents to avoid hospitalization

Vogelsmeier, A., Popejoy, L., Rantz, M., Flesner, M., Lueckenotte, A., & Alexander, G. (2015). Integrating advanced practice registered nurses into nursing homes: The Missouri Quality Initiative experience. Journal of Nursing Care Quality, 30(2), 93-98.