Hospitals Make ERs Nicer, Safer for Seniors

Many hospitals are introducing structural changes and new procedures to make emergency departments friendlier to seniors, with the American College of Emergency Physicians launching an accreditation program in the spring for emergency departments to adopt a more comprehensive and standardized approach to geriatrics, reports the Washington Post . "Older adults are more vulnerable and have less reserve," says Susan Zieman at the National Institute on Aging. "Somebody might fall and just plunk down on the floor, a 'low mechanism' fall for someone younger. But an older person can do serious damage — break a hip, for example. Also, sometimes they feel less pain, or show up with atypical symptoms, such as nausea, rather than chest pain, when they are having a heart attack. When people get into their 70s and 80s, there are some clear differences, and it takes specialty training to pick up these things." Making the emergency room less uncomfortable for seniors includes comprehensive screening procedures to check all medications, health history, and conditions at home, for the purpose of avoiding hospitalization. "We want to look at all their needs and problems, including medical and social problems," notes West Health Institute's Zia Agha.