Geriatric department measures lead to faster access to care for older people
- Date: 06-Dec-2021
- Source: Gulf Times
- Sector:Healthcare
- Country:Qatar
Geriatric department measures lead to faster access to care for older people
Rumailah Hospital (RH), which provides specialised medical care for older adults, has initiated a comprehensive improvement management programme that enables faster access to geriatric outpatient (OPD) clinics for patients.
Dr Hanadi al-Hamad, medical director at Rumailah Hospital and Qatar Rehabilitation Institute, and chairperson for the Department of Geriatrics and Long-Term Care, explained that the impetus for the improvements was the desire to deliver enhanced age-appropriate care to older adults.
"Older patients often have multiple health issues, including chronic conditions that make them less resilient when dealing with illnesses,” she said.
“Potential delays in receiving a diagnosis and treatment can exacerbate the problem and may lead to more serious complications,” Dr al-Hamad said. “It is therefore imperative that our older patients receive professional healthcare in a timely manner."
Various teams responsible for delivering geriatric OPD services in Rumailah Hospital analysed the care delivery to identify opportunities for improvements.
The work has led to a sustained reduction in the average appointment wait times in the geriatric OPD clinics.
Hospital data from 2019-2020 showed a significant reduction of 34% in average appointment wait times for older patients seen in a geriatric outpatient clinic in Rumailah Hospital; this was in spite of a substantial increase in the number