{"title":"A pre-post study of multidisciplinary ward-based conferences on nutrition care for hospital patients","authors":"Naoki Hashizume , Natsumi Maruyama , Ayu Nagamatsu , Mayumi Ikeda , Risa Takayanagai , Hanae Kita , Naruki Higashidate , Saki Sakamoto , Hirotomo Nakahara , Daisuke Masui , Nobuya Ishibashi , Takumi Kawaguchi , Tatsuru Kaji","doi":"10.1016/j.clnesp.2025.06.033","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Malnutrition is a significant concern among hospitalized patients, contributing to increased complication rates and prolonged hospital stays. To improve nutritional management, our institution implemented weekly multidisciplinary ward-based nutrition conferences involving physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and a dedicated dietitian. When necessary, a specialized nutritional support team (NST) provided additional interventions. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of this multidisciplinary approach, with the primary outcome being the length of hospital stay.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>In an advanced treatment hospital functioning as both an acute care and long-term care hospital, as well as a designated tertiary care center under Japan's national medical system by the Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare, we conducted a retrospective analysis from April 2011 to March 2020, dividing the study period into two eras: Era 1 (pre-conferences, April 2011–March 2016) and Era 2 (post-conferences, April 2016–March 2020). Key metrics included the length of hospital stay and the proportion of patients receiving NST interventions. The NST has been the main organizer of nutrition-related seminars. These seminars have been held six times a year and were designed to provide training opportunities for multidisciplinary ward personnel, including nurses, physicians, and dietitians.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>The average length of hospital stay was significantly shorter in Era 2 (15.5 ± 0.1 days) compared to Era 1 (18.2 ± 1.1 days) (p = 0.0016). The proportion of patients requiring NST interventions decreased significantly from 3.36 ± 0.29 % in Era 1 to 2.06 ± 0.47 % in Era 2 (p = 0.0013).</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>The introduction of a multidisciplinary ward-based nutrition conferences significantly reduced the length of hospital stay and decreased the number of patients requiring NST interventions. These findings highlight the value of structured, collaborative nutritional care with training opportunities in improving hospital efficiency and patient outcomes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":10352,"journal":{"name":"Clinical nutrition ESPEN","volume":"68 ","pages":"Pages 785-789"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9000,"publicationDate":"2025-06-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Clinical nutrition ESPEN","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405457725003808","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"NUTRITION & DIETETICS","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Background
Malnutrition is a significant concern among hospitalized patients, contributing to increased complication rates and prolonged hospital stays. To improve nutritional management, our institution implemented weekly multidisciplinary ward-based nutrition conferences involving physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and a dedicated dietitian. When necessary, a specialized nutritional support team (NST) provided additional interventions. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of this multidisciplinary approach, with the primary outcome being the length of hospital stay.
Methods
In an advanced treatment hospital functioning as both an acute care and long-term care hospital, as well as a designated tertiary care center under Japan's national medical system by the Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare, we conducted a retrospective analysis from April 2011 to March 2020, dividing the study period into two eras: Era 1 (pre-conferences, April 2011–March 2016) and Era 2 (post-conferences, April 2016–March 2020). Key metrics included the length of hospital stay and the proportion of patients receiving NST interventions. The NST has been the main organizer of nutrition-related seminars. These seminars have been held six times a year and were designed to provide training opportunities for multidisciplinary ward personnel, including nurses, physicians, and dietitians.
Results
The average length of hospital stay was significantly shorter in Era 2 (15.5 ± 0.1 days) compared to Era 1 (18.2 ± 1.1 days) (p = 0.0016). The proportion of patients requiring NST interventions decreased significantly from 3.36 ± 0.29 % in Era 1 to 2.06 ± 0.47 % in Era 2 (p = 0.0013).
Conclusions
The introduction of a multidisciplinary ward-based nutrition conferences significantly reduced the length of hospital stay and decreased the number of patients requiring NST interventions. These findings highlight the value of structured, collaborative nutritional care with training opportunities in improving hospital efficiency and patient outcomes.
期刊介绍:
Clinical Nutrition ESPEN is an electronic-only journal and is an official publication of the European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism (ESPEN). Nutrition and nutritional care have gained wide clinical and scientific interest during the past decades. The increasing knowledge of metabolic disturbances and nutritional assessment in chronic and acute diseases has stimulated rapid advances in design, development and clinical application of nutritional support. The aims of ESPEN are to encourage the rapid diffusion of knowledge and its application in the field of clinical nutrition and metabolism. Published bimonthly, Clinical Nutrition ESPEN focuses on publishing articles on the relationship between nutrition and disease in the setting of basic science and clinical practice. Clinical Nutrition ESPEN is available to all members of ESPEN and to all subscribers of Clinical Nutrition.