TOPIC

Older adults research

Everything we have read on older adults. Each paper is summarised from the full article rather than its abstract, so the limitations are in there too, and the funding wherever the paper declares it.

502 PAPERS · PAGE 6 OF 11 · NEWEST FIRST

• OTRNSurvey2025Examining the Relationship Between Daily Activity Levels and Elder Abuse and Neglect: Bringing Light on Elder Abuse.Journal of advanced nursingDaily-activity dependence was not linked to elder abuse in 448 older adults in Turkey. Psychological abuse was most common, and family conflict or poor self-rated health were associated with higher abuse risk.
• RNCohort2025Nonlinear Relationship Between Vital Signs and Hospitalization/Emergency Department Visits Among Older Home Healthcare Patients and Critical Vital Sign Cutoff for Adverse Outcomes: Application of Generalized Additive Model.Clinical nursing researchAmong older home healthcare patients, hospitalization or ED visits were linked to a U-shaped risk pattern. Heart rate above 83.24 was linked to a sharp rise in modeled risk; critical points were 120.36 for systolic and 72.00 for diastolic pressure.
• RNSurvey2026Care Needs of Community-Dwelling Older Adults Living in Poverty and Their Relationship With Other Biopsychosocial Variables: A Cross-Sectional Study.Journal of advanced nursingHalf of older adults living in poverty had unmet needs for money and food budgets. Lower independence, higher loneliness, and poorer quality of life were linked to fewer met care needs. Assessing these social and functional factors is essential for this population.
• RNSystematic Review2026Palliative Care for People With Very Severe to Extreme Behavioural and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD): A Scoping Review.Journal of advanced nursingAgitation in people with very severe BPSD in hospital was often treated with antipsychotics or restraint without checking pain, constipation, infection or delirium. Look for unmet needs, use behavioural and pain tools, and involve families and palliative care early.
• RNCohort2025Assessing and Managing Pain in Dementias: Insights From Interdisciplinary Text Message Communications.Pain management nursing : official journal of the American Society of Pain Management NursesPain was mentioned less often in nursing home transfer texts about residents with dementia. Pain words and medication mentions were lower than in texts about residents without dementia.
• RNOther2025Digital Dementia Education and Training for Informal Carers: A Scoping Review.Journal of clinical nursingEighteen studies mapped digital dementia education for informal carers using online platforms, video calls, apps and SMS. They reported outcomes such as knowledge, self-efficacy, stress, burden and quality of life, but did not test whether these tools work.
• RNRCT2025Interactive AI Routines for Pain Symptoms and Loneliness in Older Adults.Pain management nursing : official journal of the American Society of Pain Management NursesOlder adults living alone with chronic musculoskeletal pain did not report less pain severity after 12 weeks of voice-assistant routines combining meditation, games, music, and jokes. Pain interference, loneliness, and depression decreased in some groups, but no untreated control.
• RNOther2026Pain Assessment and Management Among Nursing Home Residents Living With Dementia.Pain management nursing : official journal of the American Society of Pain Management NursesIn nursing home residents with dementia, 74% had pain assessed with the wrong tool, and only three assessments used an observation tool appropriately. Pain was rarely recorded, but that may reflect poor assessment rather than good control.
• RNNarrative Review2026Social Frailty in Heart Failure: Concept, Impact and Preventive Strategies.Journal of advanced nursingHeart failure patients often have social frailty: inadequate support, loneliness or engagement. In cohorts it was linked to higher death and readmission risk, and poorer self-care, but no tested strategy for heart failure was shown.
• RNNarrative Review2025The Role of Technology Use in the Context of Social Isolation Among Immigrant Older Adults.The Canadian journal of nursing research = Revue canadienne de recherche en sciences infirmieresImmigrant older adults used technology to stay connected when local contact was hard, but language, low education, cost and digital skills limited access. This review does not show that technology or nurse screening improves isolation.
• RNCohort2026Model Predicting Positive Aspects of Caregiving Among Family Cares of Persons With Dementia: A Longitudinal Cohort Study.Journal of advanced nursingFamily carers of people with dementia reported more positive aspects of caregiving when they had confidence in controlling upsetting thoughts and getting respite, and when they reframed the situation. Active dementia management strategies did not predict this.
• PTOTRNMeta-Analysis2026Effects of Psychosocial Interventions on Loneliness Amongst Long-Term Care Residents: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Journal of advanced nursingFace-to-face group activities lasting under eight weeks cut loneliness in long-term care residents. Lifestyle activities like laughter, gardening and exercise worked better than psychological therapies. Virtual visits with family showed no benefit.
• RNSystematic Review2025How Do Spouses Experience Living Alone After Their Partner With Dementia Moves Into a Care Home?Journal of clinical nursingSpouses left at home after a partner with dementia enters a care home often describe loss, guilt and grief. Visiting can feel like duty, surveillance or relieving loneliness. Some report practical relief, yet many feel unable to move on.
• RNOther2026Regular Medications Administered to Older Adults in Aged Care Facilities: A Retrospective Descriptive Study.Journal of clinical nursingIn Australian aged care, 78% of older adults were administered five or more regular medications daily. Paracetamol and laxatives were most administered, and quetiapine was given to 6%. This shows medication burden, not whether these medicines should be stopped.
• RNSurvey2025Employment Status, Decision-Making, and Sleep Among Hispanic and Latinx Dementia Family Caregivers: A Secondary Data Analysis.Western journal of nursing researchHispanic and Latinx caregivers involved in more everyday decisions for relatives with dementia slept less each night. Full-time work alone was not associated with sleep, but the link between more decisions and shorter sleep was weaker among those employed full-time.
• RNSystematic Review2025Inclusion of Informal Carers in the Care of Older Adults in the Emergency Department: An Integrative Review.Journal of clinical nursingCarers of older adults in emergency departments provide vital baseline information and emotional support, but often feel excluded by restrictive policies or busy staff. Successful inclusion requires clear communication, carer education, and flexible visitation policies to ensure safe care and discharge.
• RNMeta-Analysis2026The Association Between Caregiver Psychosocial Factors and Depressive Symptoms in People With Dementia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Journal of advanced nursingCaregiver distress and lower caregiver quality of life showed the strongest links with more depressive symptoms in people with dementia; caregiver anxiety and relationship quality did not.
• RNQualitative2026Feasibility and Acceptability of the Smarthealth Intervention for Dementia Caregivers. A Qualitative Analysis of a Single-Group Pilot Study.Journal of advanced nursingTen dementia caregivers found the voice-based stress system useful for noticing stress and calming down, but alerts often came at bad times, messages felt generic, and setup or technical problems made participation burdensome. It did not test whether stress fell.
• RNSurvey2026Positive and Negative Appraisals and Quality of Life Among Family Caregivers of Adults With Formal Long-Term Care Needs: An Exploration of Model Using Structural Equation Modelling.Journal of clinical nursingAmong family caregivers, feeling caregiving was rewarding was linked to less burden; burden was strongly linked to lower quality of life. Nurse support, care-service satisfaction, secondary caregivers, and home-visit nursing were linked to more rewarding feelings.
• RNOther2025Translation, Adaptation, and Criterion Validation of the Family Caregiver Assessment Tool for French-Speaking Cardiovascular Patients in Canada (FAM-CAM-Fr).The Canadian journal of nursing research = Revue canadienne de recherche en sciences infirmieresIn 100 cardiovascular inpatients, the French caregiver FAM-CAM-Fr detected 58% of diagnosed delirium cases and rarely raised false alarms. Use it to add family observations, not to replace nurse assessment.
• RNCohort2026Predictors of Pressure Injuries in Older Residents Living in Nursing Homes in Sri Lanka: A Prospective Multi-Site Cohort Study.Journal of advanced nursingIn Sri Lankan nursing homes, having a pressure injury at baseline and having more medical devices were the only factors that predicted a new pressure injury in the final analysis. Check skin and device placement closely.
• RNQualitative2025Try to Look Again: A Phenomenological Study of Recognising Humanness in People Living With Advanced Dementia.Scandinavian journal of caring sciencesResidents with advanced dementia expressed humanness through everyday actions, relationships, and attempts to make sense of their surroundings. Behaviours such as aggression, repetition or apathy may be human expressions that need a second look.
• RNCohort2025Diagnoses Associated With Hospitalization of Nursing Home Residents With Severe Functional Impairment and Terminal Illness.Journal of the American Medical Directors AssociationNursing home residents with severe impairment or terminal illness had many potentially avoidable hospitalizations and ED visits, often from UTI, pneumonia, head trauma, and feeding-tube problems.
• RNSystematic Review2025Transportation Services in Society for Individuals Living With Dementia in Long-Term Care Facilities: A Scoping Review.Journal of the American Medical Directors AssociationOnly five studies examined transportation insecurity for residents with dementia in long-term care. None used a standard measure or fully described needs, affordability, accessibility, or dementia type and stage, so there is little evidence to guide care.
• RNCase Series2025Potential Influence of Acute Dysregulated Sleep on Fall Incidence Among Low-Income Older Women: A Case Study.Journal of gerontological nursingTwo low-income older women had sleep differences the night before a fall: one slept 267 minutes versus a 429-minute average; the other had more deep sleep and less REM sleep. This cannot prove sleep caused the fall.
• RNQualitative2025Nurturing Connection: The Emotional and Existential Dimensions of the Relationship Between Older Women and Registered Nurses in Aged Care.Scandinavian journal of caring sciencesOlder women and home-care nurses described their relationship as more than task delivery. Women valued nurses who noticed their home, shared life beyond care, and stayed consistent; nurses felt time and turnover made this hard.
• RNOther2026Mealtime Support by Direct Care Workers in Long-Term Care Facilities: Secondary Behavioural Analysis of Videos.Journal of advanced nursingVideo analysis of dementia mealtime care in South Korean long-term care found support was mostly affirmative but narrow. Workers spent most time on one-to-one assistance, rarely used names, comfort checks, or alternatives when residents refused.
• RNQualitative2025Digital Health Applications in Access to Health Service From the Perspective of Older Adults: "It Is Difficult to Keep up With the Digital Age …".Public health nursing (Boston, Mass.)Nine older adults in Türkiye said digital health apps were either easy or hard, often because steps were confusing, they feared mistakes, or they lacked training. Only three used services alone. Nurses cannot assume older patients can use appointment systems independently.
• RNCohort2025A Multi-Outcome Prognostic Model for Community-Dwelling Older Adults Admitted to Skilled Nursing Facilities for Post-Acute Care.Journal of the American Medical Directors AssociationA model using age, diagnoses, hospital stay and comorbidities estimated death within 6 months and successful return to the community after skilled nursing. It can guide goals-of-care and discharge planning, but was not tested outside Medicare data.
• RNSurvey2025The role of aesthetics in promoting health-related quality of life for older adults transitioning to long-term services and support.Geriatric nursing (New York, N.Y.)Among 376 older adults newly entering long-term care, greater enjoyment of sensory experiences was linked to more positive social interaction and stronger religious or spiritual disposition. Nursing home residents reported lower aesthetic enjoyment than those in home and community services.
• PTRNCohort2025Family Caregiver Availability and Capacity Associated With Home Health Service Types for Patients With Dementia.Journal of the American Medical Directors AssociationFor home health patients with dementia, clinician-reported lack of caregiver capacity for functional tasks was linked to receiving physical therapy; lack of caregiver availability for medical tasks was linked to receiving skilled nursing.
• RNOther2026Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Informal Carer Experiences of Older Adult Care Transitions From Hospital to Home: A Scoping Review.Journal of advanced nursingCulturally and linguistically diverse family carers often faced language barriers, were left out of discharge planning, and were unprepared for wound care, medication and symptom monitoring. Some interventions helped carers, but support was often not tailored to culture.
• RNSystematic Review2025Effectiveness of Group Interventions With Socially-Assistive Robots for Older Adults: A Systematic Review.Journal of nursing scholarship : an official publication of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of NursingRobot-assisted group sessions often engaged older adults and increased conversation, but cognition, agitation, and depression showed no clear difference from control groups.
• PTRNCohort2025Changes in Physical Activity Among Spanish Kidney Transplant Recipients: A 12-Month Longitudinal Study.Journal of renal careKidney transplant recipients reported lower activity at 3 months after surgery. Activity partly rebounded at 6 months, then fell again, and was lower at 12 months than before transplant.
• PTOTRNRCT2025A Cross-Lagged Panel Model Testing the Impact of Physical Activity During Hospitalization on 1- and 6-Month Discharge Physical Activity and Adverse Events Among Older Adults With Dementia.Journal of the American Medical Directors AssociationOlder adults with dementia who were more physically active at hospital discharge had lower odds of falling and being rehospitalized within one month. Activity levels did not drop after these adverse events occurred, suggesting discharge mobility is a key protective factor.
• RNOther2026Quality of Dying Among Institutionalised Nursing Home Residents From the Caregivers' Perspective: A Mixed-Methods Study.Journal of advanced nursingFamily caregivers rated nursing home end-of-life care as generally acceptable, with good symptom control and personal care, but closure and final practical matters were weaker, especially when residents had cognitive impairment.
• PTRNSurvey2025Cognitive Frailty and Its Risk Factors Among Patients With Chronic Kidney Disease Receiving Hemodialysis: A Cross-Sectional Study.Nursing & health sciences9% of hemodialysis patients had cognitive frailty, meaning physical frailty, cognitive functional decline and depressive symptoms together. Malnutrition risk and physical inactivity were associated with it.
• RNRCT2025Pilot Test of Aprendiendo Juntos/Learning Together Demonstrates Improved Self-Efficacy for Providing Care Among Latino Family Caregivers of Persons Living With Dementia.Western journal of nursing researchLatino caregivers of people with dementia who took a six-week online course in Spanish or English reported feeling more confident in providing complex care. The course improved self-efficacy but did not change caregivers' mental health or their view of the patient's behaviors.
• PTOTRNOther2026Safe Mobility in Hospitalised Older Adults: A Concept Analysis.Journal of clinical nursingPromote hospitalised older adults' active movement while reducing severe fall and immobility harms, rather than preventing every fall. This concept analysis defines safe mobility; it does not test patient outcomes.
• RNQualitative2026Weathering the Double Storm-Resilience in Chinese Older Cancer Patients With Long COVID: A Qualitative Study.Journal of advanced nursingOlder Chinese cancer patients with long COVID described fatigue, brain fog, cough and urinary symptoms being dismissed, and said infection precautions led to social isolation and loneliness. They also reported nurses providing fatigue pacing, emotional validation and support connections.
• RNSystematic Review2026Virtual Nursing in Residential Aged Care: What Is Known? A Rapid Review.Journal of advanced nursingVirtual nursing in residential aged care showed mixed effects on emergency presentations and hospital admissions. Nurses and staff reported better confidence and communication, but technology, records, training and missing resident feedback limit certainty.
• RNQualitative2026Engagement in Medication Communication During Transitions of Care for Rural Aged Care Residents and Family Caregivers: A Qualitative Study.Journal of clinical nursingRural aged care residents and family caregivers often learned about medication changes only after the fact, and many felt excluded from decisions. They wanted written lists, simple explanations, and staff who knew them.
• RNSystematic Review2025Navigating Everyday as Partners to Persons With Early Dementia: A Scoping Review.Scandinavian journal of caring sciencesSpouses caring for partners with young-onset dementia reported unmet needs for information, emotional support, respite, and service navigation. They often felt isolated, exhausted, and unsupported. These are caregiver experiences, not proof that support programmes work.
• RNOther2026Development and Validation of the End-of-Life Assessment Tool for Advanced Dementia: A Multi Method Study.Journal of advanced nursingIn 113 residents with advanced dementia, a 27-item nurse assessment with a score of 14.5 or higher flagged risk of death within 180 days, but it was much better at spotting risk than excluding it.
• RNQualitative2025Nurse-Led Goal Setting Activities to Enhance Older Adult Health Care and Self-Advocacy.International journal of older people nursingOlder adults in low-income senior housing set goals around safe mobility, managing health, independence and relationships. They identified barriers such as pain, transportation and busyness, and facilitators such as routine and regular check-ins.
• RNRCT2026The Effect of the Care Ecosystem Collaborative Care Model on End-of-Life Outcomes for People With Dementia and Their Caregivers.The American journal of hospice & palliative careThe telephone Care Ecosystem did not improve caregiver satisfaction with end-of-life care for people with dementia. Caregivers in that group had higher self-efficacy before death.
• RNQualitative2025Infection-Control Protocol Acceptability in Skilled Nursing Facilities During the COVID-19 Pandemic.Journal of the American Medical Directors AssociationStaff and residents in two nursing homes generally accepted color-coded infection-risk pairing, though many residents did not understand the system and worried about segregation. Clear communication about reassignments was the main implementation need.
• RNCohort2025Social Connectedness and Successful Nursing Home Discharge After Heart Failure Hospitalization.Journal of the American Medical Directors AssociationIn veterans after heart failure hospitalization who entered skilled nursing care, staff-rated high social connectedness was linked to successful community discharge within 90 days. It was an association, not proof that boosting connection causes better discharge.
• RNOther2025Association of Language Barriers and Depression Among Latino and Non-Latino White US Nursing Home Residents.Journal of the American Medical Directors AssociationDepression was common among nursing home residents, but Latino residents were less likely to have depression documented, especially those needing a Spanish interpreter. This may signal under-recognition, not lower need.
• RNQualitative2026Frail Older Patients' Experiences During Boarding in the Emergency Department: A Qualitative Study.Journal of advanced nursingFrail older patients waiting in an emergency department described feeling forgotten and unsure who was responsible, with unmet pain, hunger, thirst and privacy needs. They still trusted nurses and hoped care would come when ward admission arrived.