MDS+ RAP items associated with pressure ulcer prevalence in newly institutionalized elderly: study I

All federally funded facilities are required to use the Minimum Data Set Plus (MDS+) for functional assessment of their residents. Within the MDS+ there are 18 specific conditions addressed through Resident Assessment Protocols (RAPs). There is a RAP for pressure ulcers but the validity of the pressure ulcer RAP items has not been documented. The purpose of this study was to determine which pressure ulcer RAP items correlate with pressure ulcer prevalence in newly institutionalized elderly and whether inclusion of nutritional status information to the correlated RAP items increases association with pressure ulcer prevalence. Data were collected through a retrospective chart review of 990 residents over age 65 at 8 nursing homes. Five pressure ulcer RAP items were predictive of pressure ulcer prevalence 19.76% of the time. When nutritional status markers were added in a logistic regression, pressure ulcers were correctly predicted 32.3% of the time. In clinical practice, the pressure ulcer RAP needs to include nutritional status information to accurately reflect pressure ulcer risk.