Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital has recently announced that it will be opening a dedicated A&E unit specifically for patients over the age of 80.
These patients make up one in seven of the hospital’s 350 A&E admissions every day. The unit will be staffed by doctors, geriatricians and nurses who specialise in care for the elderly and who are trained in the unique needs of this age group. They will be able to deliver prompt and appropriate care straight away, without the patient waiting for a referral from the standard A&E department.
But why is this kind of unit necessary and what are the benefits for patients? Gary Ellis, director of first aid training company, CE Safety, explains.
“As a first aid training provider, we are very aware of the unique needs of elderly patients,” says Gary. “Things that we perhaps take for granted when treating younger patients, need to be done differently when your patient is older and more frail and the training needs to reflect that.”
It is this frailty that is the key consideration when dealing with elderly patients. For example, advancing age can make the skin very thin and fragile, and so care is needed with dressings and plasters to avoid damaging the skin. Similarly, older people, especially older women, often have brittle bones as a result of osteoporosis, and so the chest compressions of CPR need to be done with great care to avoid breaking ribs.
Other problems for elderly patients include hearing and mobility issues, dementia and an increased risk of cardiovascular problems, such as stroke and heart attack.
“First aid trainers must tailor their courses to ensure that patients are getting the right kind of care for their age.”
“It is important that first aid courses are taught with some flexibility,” explains Gary. “Just like the specialist A&E unit in Norwich, first aid trainers must tailor their courses, while still covering the core curriculum, to ensure that patients are getting the right kind of care for their age.
“Many companies offer specific paediatric first aid courses, addressing the unique needs of children up to the age of eight, but few cover the other end of the age range in the same way.”
According to the Office for National Statistics, 18 per cent of the population are now aged 65 or over and 2.5 per cent are aged over 85, so there is a growing need for such care. With the population aging all the time, it may not be long before we see an official age-specific first aid qualification for elderly patients to match the paediatric certificates already on offer.
