Characterizing the Long-term Care and Community-dwelling Elderly Patients' Use of the Emergency Department

Introduction Elderly patients, particularly those in long-term care (LTC), are a growing proportion of patients who present to the emergency department (ED). This population is medically complex, with high burdens on ED resources and patient flow. This study sought to characterize how elderly LTC an...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Curēus (Palo Alto, CA) CA), 2018-11, Vol.10 (11), p.e3642-e3642
Main Authors: Trivedi, Sachin, Roberts, Christopher, Karreman, Erwin, Lyster, Kish
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Age
Emergency medical care
Emergency Medicine
Geriatrics
Hospitals
Intervention
Long term health care
Older people
Patient satisfaction
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Summary:Introduction Elderly patients, particularly those in long-term care (LTC), are a growing proportion of patients who present to the emergency department (ED). This population is medically complex, with high burdens on ED resources and patient flow. This study sought to characterize how elderly LTC and community-dwelling (CD) patients use ED services.  Materials and methods This was a retrospective cohort study that assessed approximately 200 senior (age>65) ED visits. These patients were either residing in LTC facilities or they were CD. All participants lived in the same, medium-sized Canadian city. Data indicating demographic information, acuity of presentation, and administrative parameters (such as disposition status or length of stay) were collected and analyzed. Results A few statistically significant differences between the populations were noted. This included mean age, which was 82.6 years in the LTC population and 77.3 for the CD group (p
ISSN:2168-8184
2168-8184
DOI:10.7759/cureus.3642