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Unplanned admissions and readmissions in older people: a review of recent evidence on identifying and managing high-risk individuals

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 July 2014

Bronagh Walsh
Bronagh Walsh*
Affiliation:
Centre for Innovation and Leadership in Health Sciences, University of Southampton, UK
*
Address for correspondence: Dr Bronagh Walsh, Centre for Innovation and Leadership in Health Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, Building 45, Room 2014, University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton. Email: [email protected]
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Summary

Rising unplanned hospital admissions are a problem in ageing populations worldwide. These admissions are associated with poor outcomes for older people, contribute to rising health care costs and impede the provision of planned care. Policy and practice in recent years has focused on identification of those at risk of unplanned admission and early intervention via a range of admission avoidance services. Despite this, unplanned admissions in older people continue to rise, and managing demand for unplanned care remains a priority. Questions remain about the risk factors for unplanned admission and the best approaches to identifying and intervening with those at risk. This review explores recent evidence on admission rates, risk factors for unplanned admission in older people, identification of those at highest risk and interventions to avert unplanned admission.

Keywords

older peopleadmissionreadmissionrisk stratificationadmission avoidance
Type
Review Article
Information
Reviews in Clinical Gerontology , Volume 24 , Issue 3 , August 2014 , pp. 228 - 237
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2014 

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