Acute Change of Condition CPG

In the post-acute and long-term care (PALTC) setting a primary goal of identifying acute change of conditions (ACOC) is to enable staff to evaluate and manage a patient at the facility and avoid the transfer to a hospital or emergency room. To achieve this goal, the facility's staff and practitioners must recognize an ACOC and identify its nature, severity, and cause(s). The approach to recognition, assessment, treatment, and monitoring of ACOCs proposed in this guideline should result in better management of these events and fewer transfers to hospitals and other acute-care settings.