West Health and Sharp Memorial Hospital, both based in San Diego, are partnering to create a model of excellence for older adults across the entire healthcare continuum.
The partnership aims to create a road map of age-friendly practices to be used from the emergency department and operating room to primary care, according to a Jan. 10 news release from West Health. It will also aim to ensure older patients have access to aggressive, accelerated therapy sessions and treatments to prevent delirium or other cognitive issues, Diane Wintz, MD, medical director of the trauma program at Sharp Memorial Hospital, said in the release.
"Injuries and illnesses in older patients can have immediate, permanent consequences on their independence and mobility," Dr. Wintz said in the release. "We see the best results when there's an exceptional level of teamwork across departments and specialties. We want to see emergency teams, surgeons, pharmacists and primary care providers taking collaboration to a whole new level for our older patients."