Impact of Geriatric Consult Evaluations on Hospital Admission Rates for Older Adults

We examined the impact of a geriatric consult program in the emergency department (ED) and an ED observation geriatric care unit (GCU) setting on hospital admission rates for older ED patients.Methods:We performed a retrospective case control study from June 1 –August 31, 2019 (pre-program) to September 24, 2019–January 31, 2020 (post-program). Post-program geriatric consults were readily available in the ED and required in the GCU setting. Hospital admission rates (outcome) are reported for patients who received a geriatric consult evaluation (interv ention). We analyzed probability of admission using a mixed-effects logistic regression model that included age, gender, recent ED visit, Charlson Comorbidity Index, referral to ED observation, and geriatric consult evaluation as predictor variables.Results: A total of 9,663 geriatric ED encounters occurred, 4,042 pre-program and 5,621 post-program....
Source: Western Journal of Emergency Medicine - Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: Source Type: research