Knowledge to Practice Series: Making it Safe for Older Adults in Hospitals: A Quality Paradigm (24 May 2024)

Caring for older adults in hospitals is complex and can be fraught with risks. Hospitalised older adults commonly face issues such as immobility, deconditioning, loss of independence, functional decline falls and polypharmacy.

Against this backdrop, GERI’s latest webinar on “Making it Safe for Older Adults in Hospitals: A Quality Paradigm” brought together research by GERI and healthcare experts aimed at improving the safety and care of older adults, by addressing challenges faced in the hospital setting. Topics discussed included modifiable risk factors of unplanned readmissions, inappropriate prescribing, and interventions that improve mobility during hospital stay. 

In his opening speech, Associate Professor Lim Wee Shiong, Joint Faculty, GERI and Director, Institute of Geriatrics and Active Ageing and Senior Consultant, Department of Geriatric Medicine, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, set the stage for an exploration of these topics.

He observed that hospitals, while intended to be safe environments for recovery, often pose risks of iatrogenesis—side effects which can arise from medical treatment. To address this, Associate Professor Lim touched on the 5Ms for Quality Geriatric Care—Mobility, Medications, Mentation, Multi-complexity, and Matters.

Sharing findings from her research, GERI’s Research Associate June Teng presented a potential solution to improve appropriate prescribing for older adults in geriatric medicine outpatient clinics through the development of an intervention.

In a related presentation on the prevalence of potentially inappropriate medications being prescribed to older adults in the United States, Ms Low Suat Fern, Principal Clinical Pharmacist (Geriatric Pharmacist Specialist), Yishun Community Hospital, stressed the need for undertaking medicines reconciliation upon hospital admission, followed by a detailed medical review to assess existing medications and disease states.

Dr Melanie Tan, Adjunct Faculty, GERI and Consultant, Department of Geriatric Medicine, Ng Teng Fong General Hospital, shared findings from her study titled “Help Optimise and Mobilise Elders (H.O.M.E)”, which highlighted how mobilising older adults during their hospitalisation could improve their function, reducing risks of adverse outcomes. 

And in a study which explored the causes of early readmission in older adults following acute hospital discharge, Associate Professor Laura Tay, Joint Faculty, GERI and Head and Senior Consultant, Department of Geriatric Medicine, Sengkang General Hospital, shared that depressive symptoms and malnutrition have been identified as key modifiable risk factors, and stressed the need for early identification of these factors to support targeted interventions during admission and post-discharge.

Organised by GERI, in collaboration with the Chapter of Geriatricians (Academy of Medicine Singapore) and the Society for Geriatric Medicine Singapore, the webinar gathered 246 participants from the Ministry of Health, the Agency for Integrated Care, various healthcare institutions, and more. 

A synopsis of each presentation can be found in our Knowledge to Practice Series Webinar Brief: click here​.

Click here​ for the programme and speakers.

For more information about the presentations, please email us at enquiry@geri.com.sg.