Quality of care for people with dementia in general hospitals: national cross-sectional audit of patient assessment.

There have been recent reports of poor quality care in the National Health Service in the UK, and older people with dementia are particularly vulnerable. This study aims to examine the quality of assessment of people with dementia admitted to hospital. Cross-sectional case-note audit of key physical and psychosocial assessments was carried out in 7,934 people with dementia who were discharged from 206 general hospitals. Most people had no record of a standardised assessment of their cognitive state (56.8%, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 55.8-58.0) or functioning (74.2%, 95% CI = 73.2-75.1). Information from carers was documented in 39.0% of cases (95% CI = 37.9-40.1). There was considerable variation across hospital sites. Key assessments were less likely when people were admitted to surgical wards. Assessments fall well below recommended standards especially with regard to social and cognitive functioning. Problems are particularly marked on surgical wards.