The impact of a mobile geriatric acute team on healthcare consumption

AimDoes a mobile geriatric acute team (GAT) emanating from a geriatric ward decrease emergency department (ED) visits, hospitalizations and length of stay in hospital?FindingsThere was no observed overall reduction in ED visits, hospitalizations or days spent in hospital for the participants. However, the participants who lived in nursing homes or were referred to GAT by ambulance (in total 39%), and all the participants getting intravenous antibiotics experienced a significant reduction in all these outcomes and consequently a reduction in costs of hospital care.MessageThe results suggest that geriatric acute mobile teams do not reduce ED visits, hospitalisations, and length of stay in hospital overall. However, they might reduce healthcare use in some subgroups. PurposeThis study describes the effects of a mobile geriatric acute team (GAT) treating acutely ill geriatric patients in their homes. GAT offered more advanced diagnostic and treatment options than are normally available to primary-care led mobile teams. The aim of this study was to evaluate if interventions by GAT had effect on the number of emergency department (ED) visits, hospitalisations, and length of stay in hospital.MethodsThis is a before-after study, with outcomes recorded for each participant during the 3 months prior to the first visit by GAT and compared to the same outcomes for each participant during the 3 months after the first visit.ResultsThe participant's mean age was 84.6 years, 56% were women. There was no observed difference in ED visits, hospitalisations, and length of stay in hospital for all participants (n = 102). However, for the 27 participants living in nursing homes; ED-visits reduced on average by 0.5/participant (p = 0.002), the number of hospitalisations reduced by 0.3/participant (p = 0.018) and length of stay in hospital reduced by 4.3 days/participant (p = 0.045). For the 13 participants referred by ambulance, the number of hospitalisations reduced by 0.7/participant (p = 0.044) and length of stay in hospital reduced by 4.1 days/participant (p = 0.028). The participants who got intravenous antibiotics also had less hospital care.ConclusionThis geriatric acute mobile team did not cause reduced hospital care among the participants overall. However, it might have reduced hospitalization in some subgroups, such as patients living in nursing homes or those who got intravenous antibiotics.