Prevalence of diabetes as well as general health status of Icelandic nursing home residents 2003-2012

Vísindasjóður Félags íslenskra hjúkrunarfræðingaInngangur: Sykursýki er vaxandi vandamál meðal eldra fólks og einn af áhættuþáttum fyrir flutning á hjúkrunarheimili. Ennfremur er sjúkdómabyrði og lyfjanotkun þeirra sem eru með sykursýki oft meiri. Tilgangur rannsóknarinnar var að skoða algengi sykursýki á íslenskum hjúkrunarheimilum yfir árin 2003-2012 og gera samanburð á heilsufari, færni, lyfjanotkun og sjúkdómsgreiningum íbúa með eða án sjúkdómsgreiningarinnar sykursýki sem bjuggu á hjúkrunarheimili árið 2012. Efniviður og aðferð: Rannsóknin var afturskyggn og mælitækið Gagnasafn um heilsufar og hjúkrunarþörf íbúa á öldrunarstofnunum var notað við gagnasöfnun (N=16.169). Nánari tölfræðileg greining var gerð á gögnum frá 2012 (n=2337). Niðurstöður: Á rannsóknartímabilinu var meðalaldur frá 82,3 (sf 9,1) til 85,0 ár (sf 8,4) og hlutfall kvenna frá 65,5 til 68,0%. Hlutfall þeirra sem voru skráðir með sjúkdómsgreininguna sykursýki hækkaði úr 10,3% árið 2003 í 14,2% árið 2012 (p≤0,001). Meðalaldur íbúa með sykursýki árið 2012 var 82,7 ár en annarra 85 ár. Íbúar með sykursýki höfðu meiri húðvandamál, notuðu fleiri lyf, vitræn geta var betri og þátttaka í virkni var meiri. Þeir sem voru með sykursýki voru frekar með háþrýsting, hjartasjúkdóm vegna blóðþurrðar, heilaáfall, nýrnabilun, oflæti/þunglyndi, sjónukvilla vegna sykursýki og aflimun, en voru síður með kvíðaröskun, Alzheimer-sjúkdóm og beingisnun. Ályktun: Íbúar með sykursýki á hjúkrunarheimilum eru yngri en aðrir og betur á sig komnir andlega, en hins vegar getur meðferð þeirra verið margslungin og hana þarf að sérsníða að hverjum einstaklingi. Sykursýki er vaxandi vandi inni á hjúkrunarheimilum og því þarf að tryggja að starfsfólk hafi þekkingu á hvernig best er að meðhöndla sykursýki hjá öldruðum.Introduction: Diabetes is an increasing problem among old people as well as being a contributing factor in their need for institutional care. Comorbidity and use of medication is often greater among people with than without diabetes. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of diabetes in Icelandic nursing homes over the period 2003- 2012. Additionally we compared health, functioning, medication use and medical diagnoses of residents with diabetes to those without diabetes, living in nursing homes in 2012. Material: Retrospective study of 16.169 Minimum Data Set 2.0 assessments, further analysis conducted for data from the year 2012 (n=2337). Results: Mean age from 82.3 (SD 9.1) to 85.0 years (SD 8.4) and women were 65.5% to 68.0%. Number of residents with diabetes increased from 10.3% in the year 2003 to 14.2% in 2012 (p≤0,001). Mean age of residents with diabetes in the year 2012 was 82.7 compared to 85 years for others. Residents with diabetes had more skin problems, used more medication, their cognitive performance was better and their involvement in activities greater. They were more likely to have hypertension, arteriosclerotic heart disease, stroke, renal failure, manic depressive disorder, diabetic retinopathy or amputation. They were however, less likely to have an anxiety disorder, Alzheimer’s disease or osteoporosis. Conclusion: Residents with diabetes are younger than other residents and their cognitive performance is better, their care and treatment may however be complicated and needs to be adapted to each individual. Diabetes is an increasing problem in nursing homes and therefore an area where more knowledge among staff is needed

Fylgni við reglur um grundvallarsmitgát og umbætur.

Efst á síðunni er hægt að nálgast greinina í heild sinni með því að smella á hlekkinn.Grundvallarsmitgát er mikilvæg til að draga úr hættu á sjúkrahústengdum sýkingum, sérstaklega þar sem bakteríur verða sífellt ónæmari fyrir sýklalyfjum. Tilgangur umbótaverkefnisins var að auka fylgni við reglur um grundvallarsmitgát og draga þannig úr dreifingu örvera til sjúklinga og starfsmenn. Markmiðin voru að bera saman hversu vel starfsmenn fylgdu reglum um grundvallarsmitgát, fyrir og eftir umbætur: a) almennt á deildum, b) hjá starfsfólki og c) við sáraskiptingar. Rannsóknarsniðið var megindlegt og mælt var hversu margir fylgdu reglunum fyrir og eftir umbætur. Innleiddar voru umbætur í grundvallarsmitgát og mælingar endurteknar um það bil sautján mánuðum seinna. Metnir þættir voru: a) reglur um grundvallarsmitgát á deild, b) almennar reglur um grundvallarsmitgát hjá starfsmönnum og c) grundvallarsmitgát við umbúðaskipti á sárum. Tveir hjúkrunarfræðingar á hverri deild sáu um upplýsingasöfnun ákveðinn dag í nóvember 2006 og í apríl 2008. Tíu legudeildir tóku þátt árið 2006 og ellefu árið 2008. Fylgst var með 158 starfsmönnum árið 2006 og 142 seinna árið. Eftir umbætur báru færri skartgripi (hringi, langa eyrnalokka og hálsfestar) í vinnu með sjúklingum (p=0,03), einnig armbandsúr og armbönd (p<0,001), og fleiri með sítt hár voru með hárið uppsett (p=0,02). Hins vegar fækkaði þeim sem skiptu daglega um starfsmannaföt (p=0,03) og líka þeim sem notuðu hanska við snertingu líkamsvessa ( p<0,001) milli mælinga Niðurstöður í kjölfar umbóta gefa vísbendingar um að fylgni starfsmanna á Sjúkrahúsinu á Akureyri við reglur um grundvallarsmitgát hafi batnað nema varðandi dagleg skipti á vinnufatnaði og í notkun á hönskum við snertingu líkamsvessa. Samt sem áður er það þekkt að gæðaverkefni sem þetta hefur ekki langtímaáhrif á grundvallarsmitgát. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Standard precautions is an important factor to decrease nosocomial hospital infections, particularly because the incidence of multiresistant bacteria is increasing. The purpose of this quality project was to increase hospital staff follow up with standard precautions and as a consequence decrease the possibility of spread of bacteria between staff and patients. The aims were to compare attendance with standard precaution recommendations pre and post interventions; a) general on wards, b) among staff, and c) at wound dressing changes. The study design was quantitative and a point-prevalence methodology with pre-test/post-test design was used. Interventions were improvements in hospital standard precautions and the study was repeated seventeen months later. Assessments were; a) standard precautions of the wards, b) individual staff standard precautions, and c) standard precautions at wound dressing changes. Two research nurses per ward had the responsibility for data collection which took place at one specific day in November 2006 and April 2008. Ten wards participated in 2006 and 11 in 2008. Total number of staff observed was 158 in 2006 and 142 in 2008. After the quality project fewer staff were wearing rings, long ear rings or necklaces (<0.03), wristwatches and bracelets (p<0.001), and more with long hair had long hair set up (p=0.02). However, change of utility clothes (p=0.03) and use of gloves when at risk of body fluid exposure (p<0.001), decreased between measurements. The results indicate that follow up with standard precautions among the staff at Akureyri Hospital increased but change of utility clothes and use of gloves when at risk of body fluid exposure decreased after the interventions. However, it is known that quality projects are unlikely to have long term effects on standard precautions

The transition experience of young adults with chronic illnesses at The National University Hospital of Iceland

To access publisher's full text version of this article, please click on the hyperlink in Additional Links field or click on the hyperlink at the top of the page marked FilesTilgangur: Mikilvægt er að standa faglega að flutningi ungmenna með langvinnan heilsuvanda frá barnaþjónustu til fullorðinsþjónustu svo að þau nýti sér heilbrigðisþjónustu sem skyldi. Ef misbrestur verður þar á getur það haft neikvæð áhrif á heilsu, lífsgæði og framtíðarhorfur þeirra. Sýnt hefur verið fram á að ekki er staðið faglega að slíkum flutningi og mikil þörf er á að bæta undirbúning hans. Rannsakendur vildu kanna reynslu ungmenna með langvinnan heilsuvanda af flutningi frá barnaþjónustu til fullorðinsþjónustu Landspítala. Aðferð: Notuð varfyrirbærafræðileg eigindleg rannsóknaraðferð samkvæmt greiningaraðferð Vancouver-skólans. Þátttakendur, sem voru valdir með tilgangsúrtaki, voru ellefu ungmenni með langvinnan heilsuvanda á aldrinum 20–26 ára. Tekið var eitt viðtal við níu þátttakendur og tvö við tvo þeirra. Niðurstöður: Ungmennin litu á sig sem táninga en ekki fullorðna þegar þau voru 18 ára. Þeim fannst þau vera illa undirbúin og óvið- búin því að takast á við breytingarnar sem fylgdu flutningi frá barna- þjónustu til fullorðinsþjónustu. Með meiri reynslu hafa þau þó að eigin mati þroskast og aðlagast nýjum aðstæðum. Draga má þá ályktun af svörum ungmennanna að ekki hafi verið staðið faglega að flutningi þeirra frá barnaþjónustu til fullorðinsþjónustu Landspítala. Þeim fannst flutningurinn atburður sem hafði hvorki aðdraganda né eftirfylgni. Öll ungmennin komu með tillögur að því sem betur mætti fara við flutninginn og undirbúning hans. Ályktanir: Ef ekki er staðið vel að undirbúningi ungmenna með langvinnan heilsuvanda við flutning frá barnaþjónustu til fullorðinsþjónustu er reynsla þeirra af flutningnum erfið. Niðurstöðurnar gefa vísbendingu um að fagfólk á Landspítala þurfi að endurskoða og samræma verklag sitt og að hjúkrunarfræðingar séu í lykilstöðu til að stjórna úrbótum á þessu sviðiAim: Professional procedures are important in the transition of young adults with chronic illnesses from paediatric to adult health services. The procedures increases the prospects of the young adults making sufficient use of adult health services. Inadequate use of services can negatively impact people’s health, quality of life and future prospects. This transition generally does not follow professional procedures, and it is important to prepare the young adults for it. The aim was to study the experience of young adults with chronic illnesses during the transition from paediatric to adult health services at Landspitali, The National University Hospital of Iceland. Method: A qualitative method, based on the Vancouver School of doing phenomenology was used. Purposeful sampling was used to choose participants. Participants were eleven young adults with chronic illnesses, aged 20–26 years. Nine participant were interviewed once and two participant were interviewed twice. Results: The young adults experienced themselves as teenagers at the age of 18 years and the lack of preparedness made them feel unready for the transition from paediatric to adult health services. With more experience they felt that they had matured and adjusted to new circumstances. We concluded from the interviews that professional procedures were generally not practiced when moving young adults from paediatric to adult health services at Landspitali. The young adults experienced the transition as an event that had neither been prepared for nor had a follow up. All participants made suggestions about what could be done to improve the transition process. Conclusion: Young people with chronic illnesses experience the transition from paediatric to adult health services as difficult if they are not well-prepared. The results suggest that health care professionals at Landspitali need to rethink and coordinate their standard operating procedures, and that nurses are in a key position when it comes to promoting improvements in the field.Vísindasjóður Félags íslenskra hjúkrunarfræðinga, Vísindasjóður Landspítal

Basic mobility, accidental falls, and lifetime physical activity among rural and urban community-dwelling older adults : a population-based study in Northern Iceland

Funding Information: The research was funded with grants from the Icelandic Regional Development Institute (grant no. 102022), the University of Akureyri Research Fund (grant no. R-1803), the Akureyri Hospital Research Fund (without a grant number), and the Icelandic Nurses´ Association Research Fund (without a grant number). These financial sponsors played no role in the design, execution, interpretation of data, or writing of the study. The authors thank the study participants and the research assistants who visited all participants and collected data. Publisher Copyright: © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.The objective of this research was to investigate late-life physical functioning and lifetime history of physical activity (PA) among older adults in rural and urban Arctic communities. Data was collected in a cross-sectional, population-based study among 65 to 92-year-old community-dwelling Icelanders (N = 175, 41% ≥75-year-old, 43% women, 40% rural). Late-life physical functioning was operationalised as: basic mobility (Timed Up and Go in seconds, TUG); fall risk (TUG≥12 sec); a fall (≥1 fall/year); and recurrent falls (≥2 falls/year). PA history was based on a self-assessment. Compared to urban participants, rural participants were more likely to have fallen recently, be at fall risk, and describe more PA history. Among urban participants, no fall in the past year was independently associated with more PA in middle adulthood; and worse basic mobility and late-life fall risk were independently associated with being in the ≥75-year-old group. Among rural participants, recurrent falls were independently associated with being a man; and better basic mobility was independently associated with more PA in late adulthood. To conclude, this evidence supports an important association between better late-life physical functioning and more mid- and late-life PA and encourages further research to understand high fall risk among older men in Arctic rural areas.Peer reviewe

Mapping the burden of diabetes in five small countries in Europe and setting the agenda for health policy and strategic action

Background: Diabetes is a global epidemic affecting every country. Small countries, however, face distinctive challenges related to their health system governance and their ability to implement effective health systems’ reforms. The aim of this research was to perform a comparative assessment of existing diabetes management practices at the population level and explore governmental-related policy for Cyprus, Iceland, Luxembourg, Malta and Montenegro. This is the first time that such an evidence-based review study has been performed in the field of diabetes. The overall purpose was to set the agenda for health policy and inform strategic actions for small countries that can benefit from dealing with the diabetes epidemic at a country level. Methods: We collected data and synthesized the evidence on dealing with diabetes for each of the five small European countries according to the (1) epidemiology of diabetes and other related metabolic abnormalities, (2) burden of diabetes status and (3) diabetes registers and national plans. We collected data by contacting Ministry representatives and other bodies in each state, and by searching through publicly available information from the respective Ministry of Health website on strategies and policies. Results: Diabetes rates were highest in Cyprus and Malta. National diabetes registers are present in Cyprus and Montenegro, while national diabetes plans and diabetes-specific strategies have been established in Cyprus, Malta and Montenegro. These three countries also offer a free holistic healthcare service to their diabetes population. Conclusions: Multistakeholder, national diabetes plans and public health strategies are important means to provide direction on diabetes management and health service provision at the population level. However, political support is not always present, as seen for Iceland. The absence of evidence-based strategies, lack of funding for conducting regular health examination surveys, omission of monitoring practices and capacity scarcity are among the greatest challenges faced by small countries to effectively measure health outcomes. Nevertheless, we identified means of how these can be overcome. For example, the creation of public interdisciplinary repositories enables easily accessible data that can be used for health policy and strategic planning. Health policy-makers, funders and practitioners can consider the use of regular health examination surveys and other tools to effectively manage diabetes at the population level.peer-reviewe

Making Europe health literate : Including older adults in sparsely populated Arctic areas

Funding Information: This work was supported by the University of Akureyri, Iceland, under Grant R1803 and R2018, The Icelandic Regional Development Institute, under Grant 102022 and the Icelandic Council on Ageing, under Grant R2019. Publisher Copyright: © 2022, The Author(s).Background Older people have been identified as having lower health literacy (HL) than the general population average. Living in sparsely populated Arctic regions involves unique health challenges that may influence HL. The research aim was to explore the level of HL, its problematic dimensions, and its association with the selection of contextual factors among older adults living in sparsely populated areas in Northern Iceland. Method This was a cross-sectional study based on a stratified random sample from the national register of one urban town and two rural areas. The study included 175 participants (57.9% participation rate) who were community-dwelling (40% rural) and aged 65–92 years (M 74.2 ± SD 6.3), 43% of whom were women. Data were collected in 2017-2018 via face-to-face interviews, which included the standardised European Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire-short version (HLS-EU-Q16) with a score range from 0 to 16 (low-high HL). Results The level of HL ranged from 6–16 (M 13.25, SD ± 2.41) with 65% having sufficient HL (score 13–16), 31.3% problematic HL (score 9–12) and 3.7% inadequate HL (score 0–8). Most problematic dimension of HL was within the domains of disease prevention and health promotion related to information in the media. Univariate linear regression revealed that better HL was associated with more education (p=0.001), more resiliency (p=0.001), driving a car (p=0.006), good access to health care- (p=0.005) and medical service (p=0.027), younger age (p=0.005), adequate income (p=0.044) and less depression (p=0.006). Multivariable analysis showed that more education (p=0.014) and driving a car (p=0.017) were independent predictors of better HL. Conclusion Difficulties in HL concern information in the media. HL was strongly associated with education and driving a car however, not with urban-rural residency. Mobility and access should be considered for improving HL of older people.Background: Older people have been identified as having lower health literacy (HL) than the general population average. Living in sparsely populated Arctic regions involves unique health challenges that may influence HL. The research aim was to explore the level of HL, its problematic dimensions, and its association with the selection of contextual factors among older adults living in sparsely populated areas in Northern Iceland. Method: This was a cross-sectional study based on a stratified random sample from the national register of one urban town and two rural areas. The study included 175 participants (57.9% participation rate) who were community-dwelling (40% rural) and aged 65–92 years (M 74.2 ± SD 6.3), 43% of whom were women. Data were collected in 2017-2018 via face-to-face interviews, which included the standardised European Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire-short version (HLS-EU-Q16) with a score range from 0 to 16 (low-high HL). Results: The level of HL ranged from 6–16 (M 13.25, SD ± 2.41) with 65% having sufficient HL (score 13–16), 31.3% problematic HL (score 9–12) and 3.7% inadequate HL (score 0–8). Most problematic dimension of HL was within the domains of disease prevention and health promotion related to information in the media. Univariate linear regression revealed that better HL was associated with more education (p=0.001), more resiliency (p=0.001), driving a car (p=0.006), good access to health care- (p=0.005) and medical service (p=0.027), younger age (p=0.005), adequate income (p=0.044) and less depression (p=0.006). Multivariable analysis showed that more education (p=0.014) and driving a car (p=0.017) were independent predictors of better HL. Conclusion: Difficulties in HL concern information in the media. HL was strongly associated with education and driving a car however, not with urban-rural residency. Mobility and access should be considered for improving HL of older people.Peer reviewe

Resilience among older adults living at home : Urban-rural difference in a population-based study

Funding Information: The research was funded with grants from the Icelandic Regional Development Institute, the University of Akureyri Research Fund, the Akureyri Hospital Research Fund, and the Icelandic Nurses´ Association Research Fund. None of these hold a specific grant number. Publisher Copyright: © by Società Italiana di Gerontologia e Geriatria (SIGG).Objective. We examined how individual and contextual factors affect resilience in community-dwelling older adults living in urban or rural areas in Northern Iceland. Methods. A cross-sectional study, conducted from 2017–2018, ran-domly sampled community-dwelling older adults (age ≥ 65) stratified by residency (urban/rural), age, and gender. Results. Compared with rural dwellers (n = 75), urban dwellers (n = 105) had more education (p 0.001). Conclusions. We found a significant association between contextual and individual factors and resilience. To enable older adults to live lon-ger in their own homes, health care professionals should pay attention to health literacy and mental health factors that increase resilience.Peer reviewe

A year of Covid-19 : experiences and lessons learnt by small European island states — Cyprus, Iceland and Malta

COVID-19 became a global pandemic within weeks, as every country including small states and islands experienced a surge in cases. Small islands are known to face several challenges in the quest to curb the viral spread, but with the absence of land boarders and small population size, these factors should have played to their advantage to minimize the spread. The aim of this article was to compare and contrast the COVID- 19 situation, restrictions, preparedness, management and the healthcare systems between the small population island states of Cyprus, Iceland and Malta. Methods: Data were obtained from Ministry of Health websites and COVID dashboards of the three respective Island states in Europe. Comparisons were made between the reported cases, deaths, excess deaths, years of life lost, swabbing rates, restrictive measures, vaccination roll-out and healthcare system structures. Results: Cyprus and Malta contained the COVID-19 spread better than Iceland during the first wave. However, a significantly higher viral spread and mortality rates were observed in Malta during the second waves. Similar healthcare preparedness and services, restrictions and relaxation measures were implemented across the three islands with some exceptions. Covid-19 vaccination has initiated across all Islands with Malta leading the vaccination roll-out. Conclusion: The small population size and island status proved to be an asset during the first wave of COVID-19, but different governance approaches led to a different COVID-19 outcomes, including high mortality rates during the transition phases and the subsequent waves.peer-reviewe

Young adults with type 1 diabetes and their experiences with diabetes follow‐up and participation in the DiaPROM pilot trial: A qualitative study

This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.Aim To explore young adults' experiences of outpatient follow‐up appointments, completing electronic Patient‐Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs), and using the Problem Areas In Diabetes (PAID) scale during the Diabetes Patient‐Reported Outcome Measures (DiaPROM) pilot trial. Methods We performed a qualitative study among 19 young adults (aged 22–39 years) with type 1 diabetes who participated in the pilot trial. Between February and June 2019, we conducted individual, semi‐structured telephone interviews with participants from the intervention and control arms. We analysed the data using thematic analysis. Results Our analyses generated three themes, each with two subthemes: (1) Follow‐up with limitations; (i) Marginal dialogue about everyday challenges, (ii) Value of supportive relationships and continuity, indicate that previous follow‐up had been experienced as challenging and insufficient. (2) New insights and raised awareness; (i) More life‐oriented insights, (ii) Moving out of the comfort zone, suggest mostly positive experiences with completing questionnaires and discussing the PAID scores. (3) Addressing problem areas with an open mind; (i) Need for elaboration, (ii) Preparedness for dialogue, indicate that both openness and explanations were vital in the follow‐up. Conclusions Participants characterised the previous follow‐up as challenging and insufficient. They described completing and using the PAID as somewhat uncomfortable yet worthwhile. Our findings also suggest that by utilising diabetes distress data alongside health and biomedical outcomes, consultations became more attuned to the young adults' wishes and needs, mainly because the dialogue was more focused and direct. Hence, the PAID has the potential to facilitate person‐centredness and improve patient–provider relationships.publishedVersio

Prevalence of diabetes as well as general health status of Icelandic nursing home residents 2003-2012

Vísindasjóður Félags íslenskra hjúkrunarfræðingaInngangur: Sykursýki er vaxandi vandamál meðal eldra fólks og einn af áhættuþáttum fyrir flutning á hjúkrunarheimili. Ennfremur er sjúkdómabyrði og lyfjanotkun þeirra sem eru með sykursýki oft meiri. Tilgangur rannsóknarinnar var að skoða algengi sykursýki á íslenskum hjúkrunarheimilum yfir árin 2003-2012 og gera samanburð á heilsufari, færni, lyfjanotkun og sjúkdómsgreiningum íbúa með eða án sjúkdómsgreiningarinnar sykursýki sem bjuggu á hjúkrunarheimili árið 2012. Efniviður og aðferð: Rannsóknin var afturskyggn og mælitækið Gagnasafn um heilsufar og hjúkrunarþörf íbúa á öldrunarstofnunum var notað við gagnasöfnun (N=16.169). Nánari tölfræðileg greining var gerð á gögnum frá 2012 (n=2337). Niðurstöður: Á rannsóknartímabilinu var meðalaldur frá 82,3 (sf 9,1) til 85,0 ár (sf 8,4) og hlutfall kvenna frá 65,5 til 68,0%. Hlutfall þeirra sem voru skráðir með sjúkdómsgreininguna sykursýki hækkaði úr 10,3% árið 2003 í 14,2% árið 2012 (p≤0,001). Meðalaldur íbúa með sykursýki árið 2012 var 82,7 ár en annarra 85 ár. Íbúar með sykursýki höfðu meiri húðvandamál, notuðu fleiri lyf, vitræn geta var betri og þátttaka í virkni var meiri. Þeir sem voru með sykursýki voru frekar með háþrýsting, hjartasjúkdóm vegna blóðþurrðar, heilaáfall, nýrnabilun, oflæti/þunglyndi, sjónukvilla vegna sykursýki og aflimun, en voru síður með kvíðaröskun, Alzheimer-sjúkdóm og beingisnun. Ályktun: Íbúar með sykursýki á hjúkrunarheimilum eru yngri en aðrir og betur á sig komnir andlega, en hins vegar getur meðferð þeirra verið margslungin og hana þarf að sérsníða að hverjum einstaklingi. Sykursýki er vaxandi vandi inni á hjúkrunarheimilum og því þarf að tryggja að starfsfólk hafi þekkingu á hvernig best er að meðhöndla sykursýki hjá öldruðum.Introduction: Diabetes is an increasing problem among old people as well as being a contributing factor in their need for institutional care. Comorbidity and use of medication is often greater among people with than without diabetes. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of diabetes in Icelandic nursing homes over the period 2003- 2012. Additionally we compared health, functioning, medication use and medical diagnoses of residents with diabetes to those without diabetes, living in nursing homes in 2012. Material: Retrospective study of 16.169 Minimum Data Set 2.0 assessments, further analysis conducted for data from the year 2012 (n=2337). Results: Mean age from 82.3 (SD 9.1) to 85.0 years (SD 8.4) and women were 65.5% to 68.0%. Number of residents with diabetes increased from 10.3% in the year 2003 to 14.2% in 2012 (p≤0,001). Mean age of residents with diabetes in the year 2012 was 82.7 compared to 85 years for others. Residents with diabetes had more skin problems, used more medication, their cognitive performance was better and their involvement in activities greater. They were more likely to have hypertension, arteriosclerotic heart disease, stroke, renal failure, manic depressive disorder, diabetic retinopathy or amputation. They were however, less likely to have an anxiety disorder, Alzheimer’s disease or osteoporosis. Conclusion: Residents with diabetes are younger than other residents and their cognitive performance is better, their care and treatment may however be complicated and needs to be adapted to each individual. Diabetes is an increasing problem in nursing homes and therefore an area where more knowledge among staff is needed