Czech Presidency of the European Union
STOP malnutrition of patients and diseases resulting from poor nutrition
The Czech Presidency assumed the auspices over the international
seminar "Stop malnutrition of patients and diseases resulting from
poor nutrition" held on 11 - 12 June.
At the same time, the Presidency called upon leading EU experts in the
area of health-care and health policy to address the issue of poor
nutrition in health-care institutions and adopt relevant measures for
preventing threats to quality of life, unnecessary mortality and
morbidity in the EU.
Malnutrition does not kill patients directly but it can contribute
toward complications that lead to their death. This happens in cases
where health professionals focus their maximum attention on the main
diagnosis and attempt to contain it (hip replacement, removal of a
tumour, treatment of an infectious disease). Malnutrition remains
unnoticed and undiagnosed particularly in patients with limited
locomotive faculties or psychiatric or communication problems.
Although the main ailment may be treated correctly, the
underestimation of malnutrition leads to a devaluation of the effect
(often of a costly treatment), to the inability to rehabilitate
effectively; and a decrease of muscular tissue and physical fitness
occurs.
In Europe the issue of malnutrition concerns more than 30 million
citizens. Most malnourished persons live in private households,
particularly elder citizens. 10% of citizens over 65 years of age are
exposed to the risk of malnutrition, approximately 40% of them are
patients admitted to health-care institutions; in the case of clients
in home care the reported number is 60%.
Recent data from Great Britain indicates that approximately 3 million
people are afflicted with malnutrition. Costs for treatment of
diseases resulting from malnutrition and their complications reach 15
billion euros. In the EU the approximate amount is 170 billion euros.
The treatment itself increases the need for health-care in hospitals
(longer hospitalisation, infection-related complications) as well as
outpatient care.
As professor of surgery Olle Ljungqvist stated in his contribution,
prevention of malnutrition can save up to 1,000 euros per 1
hospitalised patient.
Representatives of the European Commission, experts from international
companies specialising in the issue of patient nutrition and
representatives of companies specialising in care for seniors and
issues related to ageing presented their experiences and new
approaches to the monitoring of the nutritional state of patients,
developments in the area of food preparation as well as new
technologies and methods.
The Czech Republic as the country holding the Presidency introduced
the activities of the Czech Association for Clinical Nourishment and
Intensive Metabolic Care. Thus it offered a possibility to prepare
meals for patients with the use of current technology and at the same
time to assess and implement these experiences and methods in hospital
and outpatient care.
Another important contribution of the seminar was the introduction of
the activities of the newly-established Working Group for Nutrition
that devises the Action Plan for Fighting Malnutrition.
The Czech Presidency thus enriches its range of accompanying events by
including another highly important topic that will also be addressed
at European level. The European Commission, and particularly the
Swedish Presidency, urge continued solutions to this serious topic.
The conference, inter alia, follows up on the Prague appeal from 2007
for fighting malnutrition in Europe and the recommendations of the
European Parliament relating to nutrition.
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Contact:
* Andrea Mimrová, Spokeswoman of the Ministry of Health
* Tel.: +420 224 972 424, GSM: +420 737 204 961, E-mail:
andrea.mimrova@mzcr.cz ---
Last update: 12.6.2009 12:10
