Background: Based on actual evidence, about one third of deliria can be prevented. Hereby, preventive measures can address both delirium predisposing as well as delirium precipitating factors.
Methods: In 2004 an interdisciplinary practice developmental project was developed, implemented and evaluated at the University Hospital Basel by action-based research.
Interventions: Preventive measures for delirium were developed, resource nurses trained and a systematic delirium screening procedure established.
Results: Nurses and doctors highly accepted the common approach. The delirium rate declined from 25% to 11%. The working load for nurses did not increase on the intervention wards, but decreased at night, whereas the night working load increased on the control wards.
Conclusion: An interprofessional and interdisciplinary approach for the prevention of delirium has multiple winners: the patient, nurses and doctors.