Inquiries and reports
Our fragmented health and care system is not meeting the needs of older people, who are most likely to suffer problems with co-ordination of care and delays in transitions between services. This report from the King’s Fund sets out a framework and tools to help local service leaders improve the care they provide for older people across nine key components.
Video
This video, which accompanies the recent report from the Kings Fund entitled 'Making our health and care systems fit for an ageing population' describes a vision of care which would undoubtedly improve patient safety as well as other aspects of quality for older people.
Other tools and resources
The way our intermediate care services are designed impacts hugely on safety and quality of care for frail older people.
Inquiries and reports
This important report from The Kings Fund authored by David Oliver, Catherine Foot, and Richard Humphries describes some of the problems with systems of care for frailer older people and sets out a framework and tools to help local service leaders improve the care they provide for older people.
Academic papers
Consistent, reliable high-quality care is what all patients want and health workers aim to provide. However, the reality for most patients, particularly those in acute hospitals, often falls far short of the ideal. In the context of acute care, the risks of fragmentation and breakdown in care co-ordination are high, especially for older patients.
Academic papers
Discharge from the hospital is a critical transition point in a patient’s care and incomplete handoffs at discharge can lead to adverse events for patients and result in avoidable readmission.
Inquiries and reports
This report from the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) outlines summary guidance and recommendations for safe nursing staffing in terms of skills mix and overall levels on inpatient wards for older people.
Other tools and resources
This toolkit from the Royal College of Physicians recommends procedures for both initial assessment for older people on admission to acute care and later comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA).
