An inpatient bed for acute nursing home admissions

Background: some older patients are admitted directly to nursing homes without a comprehensive assessment. Objective: to determine whether a hospital assessment bed might provide better assessment, treatment and a more appropriate placement for selected older people. Setting: a single bed in an elderly care unit of a district general hospital. Subjects: older people who general practitioners thought needed nursing home care but whose social workers felt might benefit from inpatient assessment. Main outcome measures: type of treatment needed (acute care, rehabilitation, palliation, long-term care) and placement (home, nursing home, residential home or hospital). Results: of 34 patients assessed, 22 (65%) needed further clinical assessment or care and 26 (75%) left hospital for places other than nursing homes. Conclusions: inpatient assessment is a successful way of assessing the needs of some older people who would otherwise have been admitted directly from their homes to nursing homes.