A study that was recently published indicates that those senior citizens who go to the emergency department find themselves at a higher risk of suffering from a long term disability in the next six months than those seniors who do not go into the hospital for emergency treatment. This study came from Yale University and was published on January 6th in the Annals of Emergency Medicine.
The study claimed that the majority of adults aged 65 or older that go to the emergency room are treated, and then quickly sent home for recovery. There is currently a lot of research out there about who goes into the ED and why they are there, but there’s not a lot of information that currently exists about what happens to these people afterward, especially in the senior citizen population that needs emergency treatment. Now, researchers can say that those who are quickly discharged from the hospital have a much higher chance of disability in the next six months than the control group that was looked at. Those that were admitted into the hospital had an even higher likelihood of disability.
More than 700 elderly individuals were observed over a span of 14 years for this survey. In addition to long term disability, researchers also looked at nursing home admissions. Nursing home admissions were also much higher in the group of people that were treated in the emergency department. There was also a higher likelihood of mortality in this group of people.
To many people, this study will seem like a shock. What exactly is happening in emergency departments that is negatively impacting senior citizens so much? However, taking a step back from this point of view and thinking about the big picture behind these numbers will illuminate the issue more clearly. The individuals that go to the ED are going there for a reason. People do not go to the emergency room for fun, but rather because there is a severe and immediate health issue. Ongoing health issues often necessitate a visit to the ED, and just because the acute issues have been resolved does not mean that the chronic health problem has been permanently cured. The ongoing health issues that these conditions create are not solved by an emergency room visit. In this light, the higher risk of disability, nursing home admittance, and death all are very logical.
Having an older loved one with chronic health problems is a difficult thing for most families. Not only is senior care necessary, but you are watching someone that you love suffer over an extended period of time. While aging is a natural part of life, we want our loved ones to do so with as little pain and suffering as possible. The senior care that you choose for them will go a long way in this respect. Having the best caregiver for your parent will help them to be a little happier, even if they do suffer from a chronic condition. If you haven’t considered in-home care before as your senior care solution, this could be something well worth considering as it keeps your loved one in a place they want to be, all while helping address their needs.
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