TY - JOUR
T1 - What are the needs of frail older patients in the emergency department?
T2 - A qualitative study
AU - Venema, Dorien
AU - Vervoort, Sigrid C.J.M.
AU - de Man-van Ginkel, Janneke M.
AU - Bleijenberg, Nienke
AU - Schoonhoven, Lisette
AU - Ham, Wietske H.W.
N1 - Funding Information:
This study was carried out as a graduation research project (thesis) for the master’s degree in Nursing Science from September 2020 until July 2021. From January 2022, the process of writing this thesis towards publication was partly funded by a fellowship funding from the Netherlands Organisation for Health Research and Development (ZonMw), project number 10040022110004, which was awarded to dr. Wietske H.W. Ham (Wietske Blom-Ham).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 The Author(s)
PY - 2023/3
Y1 - 2023/3
N2 - BACKGROUND: There is an increase in the number of frail elderly patients presenting to the emergency department. Diagnosis and treatment for this patient group is challenging due to multimorbidity, a-typical presentation and polypharmacy and requires specialised knowledge and competencies from healthcare professionals. We aim to explore the needs and preferences regarding emergency care in frail older patients based on their experiences with received care during Emergency Department admission.METHOD: A qualitative study design was used, and semi-structured interviews were conducted after discharge with twelve frail older patients admitted to emergency departments in the Netherlands. Data collection and analysis were performed iteratively, and data were thematically analysed.RESULTS: The analysis enfolded the following themes; feeling disrupted, expecting to be cared for, suppressing their needs and wanting to be seen. These themes indicated a need for situational awareness by healthcare professionals when taking care of the participants and were influenced by the participants' life experiences.CONCLUSION: Frail older patients feel disrupted when admitted to the emergency department. Because of this, they expect to be cared for, lessen their own needs and want to be seen as human beings. The impact of the admission is influenced by the extent to which healthcare professionals show situational awareness.
AB - BACKGROUND: There is an increase in the number of frail elderly patients presenting to the emergency department. Diagnosis and treatment for this patient group is challenging due to multimorbidity, a-typical presentation and polypharmacy and requires specialised knowledge and competencies from healthcare professionals. We aim to explore the needs and preferences regarding emergency care in frail older patients based on their experiences with received care during Emergency Department admission.METHOD: A qualitative study design was used, and semi-structured interviews were conducted after discharge with twelve frail older patients admitted to emergency departments in the Netherlands. Data collection and analysis were performed iteratively, and data were thematically analysed.RESULTS: The analysis enfolded the following themes; feeling disrupted, expecting to be cared for, suppressing their needs and wanting to be seen. These themes indicated a need for situational awareness by healthcare professionals when taking care of the participants and were influenced by the participants' life experiences.CONCLUSION: Frail older patients feel disrupted when admitted to the emergency department. Because of this, they expect to be cared for, lessen their own needs and want to be seen as human beings. The impact of the admission is influenced by the extent to which healthcare professionals show situational awareness.
KW - Aged
KW - Emergency Medical Services
KW - Emergency Service, Hospital
KW - Frail Elderly
KW - Health Personnel
KW - Hospitalization
KW - Humans
KW - Qualitative Research
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/85147712613
U2 - 10.1016/j.ienj.2023.101263
DO - 10.1016/j.ienj.2023.101263
M3 - Article
C2 - 36773515
AN - SCOPUS:85147712613
SN - 1755-599X
VL - 67
JO - International emergency nursing
JF - International emergency nursing
M1 - 101263
ER -