Identifying Performance Factors of Long-Term Care Facilities in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Scoping Review Protocol

Abstract

Background: Long-term care facilities (LTCFs) in many countries around the world have been severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to serious consequences for the elderly living in these facilities. Though many LTCFs experienced high case and death rates due to COVID-19, other facilities performed better, and experienced lower rates. A comprehensive understanding of performance factors affecting the transmission of COVID-19 within LTCFs is still lacking, as no published review has provided a complete perspective of LTCF management utilizing a multifactorial conceptual framework to evaluate performance during the pandemic. Recent research has consisted of strategies for infection prevention and control or studies reporting specific outcomes such as COVID-19 case and death rates within LTCFs. To address these gaps, this scoping review will identify and investigate performance factors that have affected the management of the COVID-19 pandemic in LTCFs using a multifactorial conceptual framework of performance. Methods: The CINAHL, MEDLINE (Ovid), CAIRN, Science Direct, and Web of Science databases will be searched. Included articles will have been published in a peer-reviewed journal, in English or French, between January 1st, 2020, and December 31st, 2021. They will discuss the review’s population (LTCFs), concept (dimensions of performance according to a modified version of the Ministère de la santé et des services sociaux du Québec conceptual framework), and context (COVID-19), as well as facilitators and barriers affecting performance of LTCFs. Each article will be screened by a minimum of two authors in an independent manner, after which the data from selected articles will be extracted by one author and then reviewed by the principal investigator. Results: The results will be presented both narratively and with visual aids (i.e., flowcharts, tables, conceptual maps). Discussion: A comprehensive understanding of the factors affecting performance within LTCFs could lead to improved infection prevention and control measures for the rest of the COVID-19 pandemic and assist in the proper management of future pandemics or infection outbreaks. Information on this topic could therefore lead to an improvement in the care and security of LTCF residents and personnel.Registration: Research Registry ID: researchregistry7026