The association of nursing characteristics and outcomes of hospitalized patients with dementia: A scoping review protocol

Abstract

Introduction: Individuals with dementia end up in emergency care over 1.4 million times a year, are hospitalized more frequently and have higher mortality than patients without dementia. Given the vital role of nursing care in supporting hospitalized patients with dementia and ensuring quality outcomes, understanding how nursing characteristics influence their care is crucial. While previous research has linked nursing characteristics to adverse outcomes in general hospital populations, there has been no comprehensive review of their specific impact on dementia patients or whether they face disproportionate risks. Synthesizing the existing literature is essential to identify patterns, gaps, and opportunities to improve care. Objective: The objective of this scoping review is to summarize and synthesize the existing knowledge on how nursing characteristics influence outcomes of hospitalized patients with dementia. Inclusion criteria: This review will include studies on the nursing workforce that report on health outcomes for hospitalized patients with dementia. Methods: Relevant sources will be identified using PubMed.gov, Embase.com, CINAHL complete (EBSCO), APA PsychINFO (EBSCO), Scopus.com, and Web of Science. The search will be limited to peer-reviewed empirical studies published in English and focused on nursing and patient outcomes for hospitalized patients with dementia; grey literature will not be included. Covidence will be used to screen studies for inclusion criteria. Study characteristics will be extracted from each article based on prespecified domains. Two authors will independently screen and review selected articles. The review will follow the Preferred Reporting Items for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) checklist for reporting scoping reviews.