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Abstract Background Nursing home residents (NHR) often face challenges receiving appropriate care in acute settings. The national Urgent And Emergency Care Daily Situation Report highlights the number of individuals aged over 75 awaiting hospital beds in the Emergency Department (ED), potentially influencing care decisions based on age over individual needs. Methods A six-month retrospective analysis of NHR admissions used hospital records to gather key metrics such as biographical data, pressure ulceration rates, instances of non-oral intake (NPO), length-of-stay (LOS) and inpatient mortality. Results Of the 128 admitted NHR, 22 were under 75 (mean 70.41 years; 66-74) and 106 were aged 75 and over (mean 84.98 years; 75-99). For the medically admitted under 75 cohort, the average ED stay lasted 1.14 days (0.36-3.72) with a hospital LOS of 11.54 days (3.54-24.9). Those under 75 admitted by the acute medical unit (AMU) spent an average of 0.62 days (0.02-1.14) in ED with a LOS of 6.52 days (0.34-11.86). For the over 75 cohort, those medically admitted spent an average of 0.8 days (0.18-2.17) in ED with a hospital LOS of 9.02 days (0.83-43.53), compared to 0.54 days in ED (0.06-1.45) with a LOS of 8.3 days (1.28-20.27) for those admitted by AMU. Pressure ulceration was found in 32% of the under 75 group and 27% of the over 75 group, with uncertain origins in 9% and 2%, respectively. Additionally, 13.6% of those under 75 and 7.5% of those over 75 were made NPO. The overall mortality rate was 18.5% (18% in the under 75 group and 15% in the over 75 group). Conclusion The study highlights significant differences in the care and outcomes of NHR attending the ED with younger NHR experiencing longer stays and worse outcomes. This underscores the need for age-specific strategies to enhance emergency care for NHR, ensuring that interventions are appropriately aligned with individual needs.
Davey et al. (Sun,) studied this question.