An emergency department program focused on geriatric transitional care reduced older patients' risk of unnecessary hospitalization by 33 percent at Chicago-based Northwestern Memorial Hospital, according to a study published in Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.
The research focused on the Geriatric Emergency Department Innovations program, which aims to reduce hospitalizations in older patients after an ED visit and prevent future admissions and visits.
Hospital admissions can increase older patients' risk of delirium, infection and falls, the study authors wrote. Many older adults lose independence and face a decline in functional ability and quality of life during and after hospitalization.
In the study, nurses who focused on geriatric care examined whether ED patients aged 65 and older were experiencing mental or physical decline, if they struggled to care for themselves at home and if they had medical complexities often found in their age group.
Patients who exhibited these conditions would be transferred from the ED to a floor with quieter rooms, TVs and less harsh lighting. After being discharged, the patients received follow-up calls and offers for appointments with social workers.
Patients in the ED who received this specialized care were admitted to the hospital 36 percent of the time. However, patients who did not receive specialized geriatric care were admitted 53 percent of the time.
"With this program, we have created an otherwise non-existent safety net for this vulnerable population," said Scott Dresden, MD, one of the study's authors and assistant professor of emergency medicine at Chicago-based Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, in a Northwestern Now News post. "We wanted to ensure that we weren't just discharging older patients from the emergency department only to be hospitalized again relatively quickly after something preventable like a fall."