(Warwick, RI) – Kent Hospital has received the Silver-Level 2 Geriatric Emergency Department Accreditation (GEDA) from the American College of Emergency Physicians for its dedication to providing quality emergency care for older adults. As the only Silver-Level 2 Geriatric Emergency Department in the state of Rhode Island, Kent Hospital joins an exclusive group of less than 100 hospitals nationally to earn the prestigious designation.
The accreditation program was developed to ensure geriatric patients receive well-coordinated, high-quality care during the Emergency Department experience. Silver-Level 2 emergency departments, such as Kent Hospital, have demonstrated specific initiatives that elevate the level of care for seniors and staff trained and dedicated to implementing the hospital’s efforts.
“I am proud of our dedicated team who worked tirelessly to earn this recognition, but more importantly, improve the care of our older adults. We know that growth in the over-65 population, in the next five years and beyond, is going to grow exponentially. Currently, geriatric patients account for 18% of our population with this segment growing 46% by 2050. At Kent Hospital, we have committed ourselves to care for our community presently and in the future. Designations such as this reaffirm our commitment to provide the highest quality care for our older patients,” said Paari Gopalakrishnan, MD, MBA, president and COO, Kent Hospital.
“This Silver-Level 2 Geriatric Emergency Department Accreditation builds on the strong commitment we have in caring for our older adults at Kent Hospital. For the last 3 years, we have operated the Acute Care for Elders (ACE) Inpatient Unit, of which there are only 43 nationally. It’s just one specialized program in Kent Hospital’s Healthy Aging and Serious Illness service line, meant to diagnose, treat, and manage many of the specific issues that are impacting the health and quality of life of our community’s aging population. The average age of the 1,300 patients we discharge annually from this unit is 84 years old and our quality outcomes are exceptional,” Dr. Gopalakrishnan added.
Best practices for geriatric EDs include:
- Ensuring geriatric-focused education and interdisciplinary staffing
- Providing standardized approaches to care that address common geriatric issues
- Ensuring optimal transitions of care from the ED to other settings, such as inpatient, home, community-based care, rehabilitation or long-term care
- Promoting geriatric-focused quality improvement, and enhancements to the physical environment, equipment, and supplies
According to the American College of Emergency Physicians, the proportion of the United States (U.S.) population over 65 years of age is projected to nearly double from 43 million in 2012 to 83 million in 2050. Older adults have unique pre-hospital, ED, and inpatient healthcare needs that deserve specially designed care delivery processes. Older adults are more likely to be admitted to the hospital and to have longer ED lengths of stay.
Kent Hospital, a Care New England hospital, is a 359-bed, acute care hospital. It is Rhode Island’s second-largest hospital, serving approximately 300,000 residents of central Rhode Island. A teaching affiliate of The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University and The University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine, Kent offers training programs in emergency medicine, family medicine, internal medicine, and gastroenterology. Kent’s Emergency Department (ED), categorized as a high-volume ED by CMS, sees approximately 55,000 patients a year and is one of four hospitals in Rhode Island to perform emergency angioplasty care for heart attacks. In addition, Kent Hospital has a long-standing clinical affiliation with Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital offering high-quality, local medical care for our patients needing cardiology, pulmonary, thoracic surgery, colorectal surgery, and other surgical services. Kent Hospital has a strong commitment to becoming age-friendly to provide the highest quality care for older adults. Kent Hospital’s Silver-Level 2 Geriatric ED Accreditation and Acute Care for Elders (ACE) unit are examples of Kent Hospital’s Healthy Aging and Serious Illness service line, meant to diagnose, treat, and manage many of the specific issues that are impacting the health and quality of life of the community’s aging population.