Introduction
All forms of diabetes affect numerous individuals across the nation and remain the most prevalent non-infective disease among patients. The following study would focus on the age group that is predominantly affected by life-changing diabetes, individuals aged sixty-five or older (LeRoith et al., 2019). Information can be primarily gathered from the emergency room and hospitalization records, as these databases may assist in depicting the severity of the condition and ways in which treatment is currently operating. Similarly, this data may be compared to less life-threatening forms of diabetes in order to observe changing trends of the condition.
The study can analyze documents and data that have been acquired over the past year in order to allow for a broader and more inclusive investigation. Similarly, this time frame allows for a better perception of trends as the long-term analysis may be more prone to depicting details that would be missed in a more short-term approach. Because the health information review will occur within a designated population and facility, a longer timeframe also will produce more data which can reduce errors or inaccuracies that are usually more common with smaller sample sizes.
The data gathering process will target personal health records which will allow the researchers to observe severity, hospitalization counts, and the background and age of the patients. Additionally, the treatment options and effectiveness can be incorporated into the investigation in order to observe the health trends for the targeted population. Because the study will observe both general hospitalization records and emergency room visits, it is vital to collect these documents from admission, ER, and other offices within the facility. However, with the sensitivity of these documents, it is vital that patient consent is respected and provided before the data can be viewed, collected, and analyzed.
Personnel Requirements
The study will require certain personnel to perform research tasks while other staff members will be expected to provide their best cooperation with the project. The individuals whose cooperation will be necessary include emergency room nursing staff and doctors, nurses within the facility, doctors and physicians specializing in diabetes, and other caregivers that interact with patients within the sixty-five or above age bracket. This specific age group has recently shown that treatment is effective when individualized and this may also be prominent within the current study (Schernthaner & Schernthaner-Reiter, 2018). Other staff will require managers and administrative workers who maintain health records and hospitalization data. Similarly, all health workers that are directly involved with treatment or medication would also be required to participate. However, the majority of the facility staff would only be required to be open to interviews and descriptions of the state of patients and the effects of the condition and the treatment.
The project will be fundamentally supported by staff members that will conduct investigative actions throughout the facility. These tasks will likely include the collection of health records, communication with other hospital staff, and the analysis of gathered data. As such, these physicians or hospital staff will require either data-management training or aid in the form of specialists. The project would benefit from the development of data analysis skills provided to the staff involved in the study.
Conclusion
The study aims to observe the current trends of patients with diabetes aged sixty-five or older within the selected health care setting. It is integral to observe changes in the severity of the condition as well as the effectiveness of current treatment. The use of a one-year record and the provision of adequate training to the involved staff is likely to introduce a detailed and accurate picture of health trends among diabetes patients in the selected age bracket.
References
Schernthaner, G., & Schernthaner-Reiter, M.H. (2018). Diabetes in the older patient: heterogeneity requires individualization of therapeutic strategies. Diabetologia, 61(1) 1503–1516. Web.
LeRoith, D., Biesells, G J., Braithwaite, S. S., Casanueva, F. F., Draznin, B., Halter, J. B., Hirsch, I.B, McDonnell, M. E., Molitch M. E., Murad, M. H., & Sinclair, A. J. (2019). Treatment of diabetes in older adults: An endocrine society clinical practice guideline. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 104(5), 1520–1574. Web.