As U.S. Population Ages, Hospitals Begin Creating Emergency Rooms Designed To Better Suit Older Patients’ Unique Needs
“There’s a growing awareness that the traditional design of emergency-department care isn’t well suited to frail, older adults,” says Kevin J. Biese, an emergency-medicine physician who heads the new Geriatric ED Accreditation Board of the American College of Emergency Physicians.
The Wall Street Journal:
Emergency Rooms Get A Makeover For The Elderly
Marcus Overton isn’t a stranger to emergency rooms—and he doesn’t like them. “They’re chaotic and loud,” says the 75-year-old San Diego resident, who battles diabetes and heart-valve problems. “They usually put you in a bed, pull a curtain around you, and you wait.” But last month, the former actor and arts administrator sought treatment for shortness of breath at an ER designed for elderly patients and their families. It was a wholly different experience. (Howard, 4/21)
In other news on aging —
Sacramento Bee:
AARP: Millions Of Family Caregivers Fear They’ll Make Mistake
About a quarter of the nation’s 40 million family caregivers live with the fear that they will make a mistake on vital medical tasks such as giving injections or caring for wounds that could harm their loved ones, according to an AARP report released this week. (Anderson, 4/22)
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