Pressure Injuries in Nursing Homes: Investigating Racial/Ethnic Differences Using National Data

Context: In the United States, Black nursing home (NH) residents have higher rates of pressure injury (PI) than White residents. Although some studies ascribe this to a relatively high proportion of Black residents in NHs with poor outcomes and limited resources, the factors that associate with PIs and their consequences across and within NHs remain poorly understood. Also, little is known about PIs among residents of differing races and ethnicities. Objectives: Using four national datasets from 2016–2017, we evaluated U.S. NHs to characterize differences in PI-related outcomes among non-Hispanic Whites, non-Hispanic Blacks, Hispanics, Asians, American Indian or Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islanders, and clarified the impact of resident-, facility-, and community-level characteristics on these outcomes. Methods: We calculated the annual incidence rate of PIs, the probability of PI healing, and the prevalence of PI-associated pain and analgesic prescription. We determined the bivariate associations between each of these outcomes and race/ethnicity, and between each outcome and multiple potential covariates. Multivariable analyses then evaluated the associations between each outcome and race/ethnicity while adjusting for covariates. Findings: In the bivariate analyses, the annual incidence rate of stage 2, 3, 4, and unstageable PIs for Whites was lower than Blacks and Hispanics, similar to American Indians or Alaska Natives, and higher than Asians and Native Hawaiians or Other Pacific Islanders. In the multivariable analyses, the PI incidence rate ratio was higher only among American Indians or Alaska Natives, and this difference was associated with a NH-level variable—the proportion of racial and ethnic minority residents. Other outcomes did not vary by race/ethnicity. An adjusted exploratory analysis was conducted to help explain the difference between the bivariate and multivariable analyses and revealed an important within-NH difference: Compared to Whites, the PI incidence rate ratios were higher in women who were Black, or American Indian or Alaska Native. Limitations: Our findings are correlational and may be impacted by unevaluated variables and the limitations of administrative data. Implications: In U.S. NHs, the annual incidence rate of PIs varies by race/ethnicity. Facility characteristics strongly influence this variation. Higher incidence rate ratios among racial and ethnic minority residents also are explained by differences within NHs and are striking among subgroups, including female residents who are Black, or American Indian or Alaska Native. Future research should evaluate the sexes separately and explore both across-NH and within-NH differences to determine whether there are structural inequities, bias, and disparate care.