2026/03/01 by Sophia Werden Abrams, Safura Syed, Ashwini Namasivayam‐MacDonald +9 · 1 voice
Medicine · Health Professions · #Thermoregulation and physiological responses #Thermal Regulation in Medicine #Pressure Ulcer Prevention and Management
paper · doi:10.1111/opn.70070
openalex publication_date 2026/03/01 · openalex created_date 2026/03/11 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/31
BACKGROUND: Long-term care (LTC) residents are prone to dehydration, which has many serious effects on health. A multicomponent intervention is required to mitigate dehydration in LTC; however, previous research has not explored the experiences of staff who deliver interventions. The purpose of this study was to explore staff perspectives on the feasibility of implementing the environmental components of a novel multicomponent hydration intervention. METHODS: The intervention was enacted over 4 weeks on an urban LTC unit in Ontario, Canada. The components were large drinking glasses (300 mL) and a purpose-built beverage trolley. Observations of workflow by research assistants were conducted throughout the intervention. Personal support staff participated in post-intervention semi-structured interviews, framed using the Behaviour Change Wheel, to determine the perceived factors influencing implementation. Reflexive thematic analysis was used to generate qualitative themes from interview transcripts. RESULTS: Eight staff members participated in post-intervention interviews. Ages ranged from 20 to 49 years, with 1-25 years of experience in LTC. While some minor improvements were suggested, staff were accepting of the environmental strategies and integrated them into the workflow consistently. Four major themes were generated via qualitative analysis and categorised using the Behaviour Change Wheel: (1) optimising efficiency (physical opportunity, reflective motivation), (2) adapting to change (reflective motivation and social opportunity), (3) knowing the resident (reflective motivation, psychological capability) and (4) supporting hydration (physical opportunity, psychological capability, reflective motivation). IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: The results of this study indicate that LTC staff perceive the environmental components of a novel hydration intervention to be feasible and useful in supporting resident hydration.