Are geriatric emergency services necessary? An evaluation from the point of view of the patients and their relatives

Year 2025, Volume: 6 Issue: 2, 140 - 144, 28.07.2025

Adeviyye Aksoy , Resmiye Nur Okudan

Abstract

Introduction: Elderly patients’ emergency department admission is increasing and constitutes 1/3 of all admissions. The aim of the study is to determine the factors affecting geriatric patients’ satisfaction in the emergency departments, and to increase their satisfaction with our recommendations.

Methods: Data were collected with face-to-face interview technique to the elderly patients or their companions in the emergency department for 50 days, prospectively. In the questionnaire, there are questions about the sociodemographic characteristics of the patients such as age, gender, educational status and the design and architecture of the emergency department, and its suitability for the elderly patient.

Results: There are 359 individuals accepted to join the face-to-face interview survey. The majority of the participants (93,87%, n=337) thought that there should be a separated emergency department for geriatrics, 95,26% (n=342) of them stated that if a geriatric emergency department was established, they would prefer, 99.72% (n=358) of them wanted to be informed at every step of the treatment and follow-up, 96,10% (n=345) of them argued that they need a separate physical space, 95.82% (n=344) of them stated that the area should be noise-free, 98.05% (n=352) of them wanted an examination bed where they could easily lie down/get up, 83.00% (n=298) of them wanted to have a walker/cane that they could use, and 98.05% (n=352) of them wanted unobtrusive lighting.

Conclusion: In the emergency medical care of geriatric patients, identifying their needs and improving service delivery will contribute to increase the quality of patient care.

Keywords

Geriatric emergency medicine , seniors health , satisfaction , emergency care

Geriatrik acil servisler gerekli midir? Hasta ve hasta yakınlarının gözünden bir değerlendirme

Abstract

Giriş: Acil servise başvuran yaşlı hastaların sayısı giderek artmaktadır ve tüm acil servis kabullerinin 1/3'ünü oluşturmaktadır. Çalışmanın amacı, geriatrik hastaların acil servislerdeki memnuniyetlerini etkileyen faktörleri belirlemek ve önerilerde bulunarak memnuniyetlerini artırmaktır.

Yöntemler: Veriler, 50 gün boyunca acil servise başvuran yaşlı hastalara veya refakatçilerine anket formunun yüz yüze görüşme tekniği ile prospektif olarak toplanmıştır. Ankette, hastaların yaş, cinsiyet, eğitim durumu gibi sosyodemografik özellikleri ile acil servis tasarımı ve mimarisi ve yaşlı hastaya uygunluğu hakkında sorular bulunmaktadır.

Bulgular: Yüz yüze yapılan ankete 359 kişi katılmayı kabul etti. Katılımcıların büyük çoğunluğu (%93,87, n=337) geriatri için ayrı bir acil servis olması gerektiğini düşünürken, %95,26'sı (n=342) geriatrik acil servisin kurulması durumunda bunu tercih edeceklerini, %99,72'si (n=358) tedavi ve takibin her aşamasında bilgilendirilmek istediklerini, %96,10'u (n=345) ayrı bir fiziksel alana ihtiyaç duyduklarını, %95,82'si (n=344) alanın gürültüsüz olması gerektiğini, %98,05'i (n=352) kolayca yatıp kalkabilecekleri bir muayene yatağı istediklerini, %83,00'ı (n=298) kullanabilecekleri bir yürüteç/baston istediklerini ve %98,05'i (n=352) gözü yormayan bir aydınlatma istediklerini belirtmişlerdir.

Sonuç: Geriatrik hastaların acil servis tıbbi bakımlarında ihtiyaçlarını belirlemek ve bu ihtiyaçlar doğrultusunda hizmet sunumunu iyileştirmek, hasta bakım kalitesinin artırılmasına katkıda bulunacaktır.

Keywords

Geriatrik Acil Tıp , Yaşlı Sağlığı , Memnuniyet , Acil Bakım

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