Using Plain Water With Oral Care to Increase Hydration for Long Term Care Residents With Disordered Swallowing

Implementing the Frazier Free Water Protocol to Improve Hydration and Quality of Life in Long Term Care Residents

The Frazier Free Water Protocol (FFWP) using plain, thin (unmodified) water is an accepted method to increase fluid intake and hydration in older adults with disordered swallowing and dementia.This study aims to take an interdisciplinary approach to see if the FFWP with improved oral care can be introduced in a long term care (LTC) setting comparing an intervention group with a control group receiving standard oral care, to prevent respiratory infections.

The investigators will recruit a convenience sample of 36 participants from a single long-term care facility. Participants will be randomly assigned into control or intervention groups. Both groups will be assessed at study onset for swallowing and oral health and continue with agreed upon diet texture and fluid modifications. The intervention group (FFWP and improved oral hygiene) will receive a dental hygienist cleaning at onset of the study and have supervised tooth brushing before thin water between meals. The control group will continue with standard oral care and offered the full dental hygienist cleaning at the end of the study. If findings indicate no difference between groups on outcome measures (eg. respiratory illness, hydration, nutrition) then the intervention is considered efficacious in long-term care residents. If improvements in outcome measures are evident for the treatment relative to the control group, then this intervention may provide opportunity for improved healthcare and cost-savings.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Long Term Care Residents with moderate to severe swallowing difficulty and modified texture diet; or have a dry mouth and thirsty most of the time by report of patient participant, family or staff.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Participant Resident taking part in another study; participant finished another study in last 30 days prior to this study; Participant has dental pain or waiting to see a dentist for pain and discomfort; Participant has current chest infection including pneumonia or is prone to chest infections with more than one episode per year; Participant is unable to tolerate assessments and oral care.