Minimal Data Set-Home Care Has an Added Value in the Admission Procedure for a Nursing Home

Objectives: To investigate how the request for nursing home admission is performed and whether Minimum Data Set (MDS) Home Care can contribute to the process of admission to a nursing home. Methods: Design: Observational study. Participants: Persons on a priority waiting list for a public nursing home (n=47). Measurements: Inventory of the added information provided by the use of the MDS Home Care and an inventory by the general practitioner. Results: People on the waiting list scored well for activities of daily living but live in a vulnerable home-care situation, caused by severe communication problems or/and pain or/and a higher level of cognitive problems than expected on regular data. Conclusion: The admission procedure to nursing homes has to be adapted. The MDS Home Care can be an additional tool.