| Are Emergency Rooms User Friendly for our Frail Elders? |
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by Dan Osterweil, MD, CMD Researchers from the Centre for Research in Geriatric Medicine, Australia, studied patients 75 years or older in emergency departments around the world to paint a picture of the unique problems they face — and how ERs can change to better serve them. According to the lead author, older people come to have other conditions such as immobility, confusion, and Incontinence. The findings also indicated that for many, functional and cognitive issues increased afterward. Before coming to the ER, 54 percent were independent and didn’t require help for daily activities. Afterwards, only 33 percent were still listed as "completely independent." Caution is required in interpreting the data; one should not confuse association with causation. Many Elders have complex conditions that are likely to get worse with time, whether they visited an ED or not. Having said that, one has to keep in mind that ED and hospitals are not friendly environments for older confused people. Therefore, we should be making efforts to diagnose and manage elders in friendlier, more familiar environments which may be less likely to induce confusion or carry risk of infection. Want to comment or discuss this article? Login to the new CALTCM Blog. |