Improving healthcare staff awareness of malnutrition in acute geriatric care: a European multicenter quality improvement project

INTRODUCTION: Malnutrition affects more than 25% of hospitalized older adults, is often underrecognized, and is associated with adverse clinical outcomes. Despite European guidelines, standardized screening and management remain inconsistent across geriatric services. This quality improvement (QI) project aimed to enhance healthcare staff's knowledge and practices regarding malnutrition in acute geriatric settings. METHODS: A multicenter QI project was conducted in seven hospitals across five countries (France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom). An educational infographic on malnutrition was displayed for 4 weeks in acute geriatric wards, incorporating a QR code linking to national guidelines and key scientific resources. Self-rated knowledge of healthcare staff (including junior doctors, nurses, physiotherapists and other healthcare professionals) was measured via surveys administered before and after a 4-week infographic display period. Pre- and post-intervention audits of nutritional risk assessments in patient records were conducted to evaluate changes in healthcare staff behavior. RESULTS: A total of 237 survey responses were collected (130 pre-intervention and 107 post-intervention). Self-rated knowledge increased, with respondents reporting good/excellent knowledge rising from 33.8 to 56.1%. Awareness of malnutrition prevalence improved, with those estimating rates at ≥ 25% increasing from 44.6 to 62.3%. Changes were limited for confidence in screening (35.4-37.3%) and acting on malnutrition (35.4-39.3%), while perceived professional responsibility remained high (78.5-80.4%). Point-prevalence audits suggested increased documentation of nutritional screening across several sites. Participant comments indicated that the infographic was perceived as useful and clear. CONCLUSION: A simple infographic may help improve staff awareness of malnutrition and support geriatric nutritional care. Further efforts should focus on multimodal educational strategies, institutional support, and evaluation of long-term clinical outcomes.