Biomaterial Database

Acute medical bed usage by nursing home residents. 1999

T R Beringer, and P Flanagan

Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast.

An increasing number of elderly patients in nursing home care appears to be presenting to hospital for acute medical admission. A survey of acute hospital care was undertaken to establish accurately the number and character of such admissions. A total of 1300 acute medical beds was surveyed in Northern Ireland in June 1996 and January 1997 on a single day using a standardised proforma. Demographic details, diagnosis and length of admission were recorded. A total of 84 patients over the age of 65 (mean 79.5 years) admitted from nursing home care was identified in June 1996 and a total of 125 (mean 83.3 years) in January 1997. A total of 88 (70%) of admissions in 1997 were accompanied by a general practitioner's letter. The assessing doctor judged that 12 (9.6%) of admissions in 1997 could have had investigations and or treatment reasonably instituted in a nursing home. The proportion of acute medical beds occupied by nursing home residents was 6% in June 1996 rising to 10% in January 1997. The study accurately identifies the significant contribution of nursing home patients to acute medical admissions and the low proportion in whom admission was unnecessary. Closure of long stay hospital facilities should be accompanied by investment in community medical services and also reinvestment in acute hospital care for elderly people.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D007902	Length of Stay	The period of confinement of a patient to a hospital or other health facility.	Hospital Stay,Hospital Stays,Stay Length,Stay Lengths,Stay, Hospital,Stays, Hospital
D008297	Male		Males
D009660	Northern Ireland	The northern one-sixth of the island of Ireland - between the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea; northwest of France. The capital is Belfast.
D009735	Nursing Homes	Facilities which provide nursing supervision and limited medical care to persons who do not require hospitalization.	Homes, Nursing,Nursing Home
D010360	Patient Transfer	Interfacility or intrahospital transfer of patients. Intrahospital transfer is usually to obtain a specific kind of care and interfacility transfer is usually for economic reasons as well as for the type of care provided.	Patient Dumping,Care Transition,Health Care Transition,Patient Transition,Patient Turfing,Transition of Care,Care Transition, Health,Care Transitions,Care Transitions, Health,Dumping, Patient,Health Care Transitions,Patient Transfers,Patient Transitions,Patient Turfings,Transfer, Patient,Transfers, Patient,Transition, Care,Transition, Health Care,Transition, Patient,Transitions, Care,Transitions, Health Care,Transitions, Patient,Turfing, Patient,Turfings, Patient
D005260	Female		Females
D006302	Health Services Research	The integration of epidemiologic, sociological, economic, and other analytic sciences in the study of health services. Health services research is usually concerned with relationships between need, demand, supply, use, and outcome of health services. The aim of the research is evaluation, particularly in terms of structure, process, output, and outcome. (From Last, Dictionary of Epidemiology, 2d ed)	Health Care Research,Medical Care Research,Research, Health Services,Action Research,Health Services Evaluation,Healthcare Research,Research, Medical Care,Evaluation, Health Services,Evaluations, Health Services,Health Services Evaluations,Research, Action,Research, Health Care,Research, Healthcare
D006760	Hospitalization	The confinement of a patient in a hospital.	Hospitalizations
D006761	Hospitals	Institutions with an organized medical staff which provide medical care to patients.	Hospital
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man