Hospitalization Assessment Tools Generally Do Not Consider Families’ Wishes

​Currently available tools are generally not comprehensive enough to adequately assess long-term care residents' suitability for admission to hospitals, according to a review of 29 articles published online June 22, 2014, in BMC Geriatrics. The articles looked at 16 assessment tools that assessed aspects such as specific medical diagnoses, acuteness/severity of symptoms, residents' characteristics prior to admission, residents' or families' wishes, existence of a care plan, and availability or requirement of resources.