More older people are newly admitted to permanent residential
aged care from hospitals than from the community, according to a
report released today by the Australian Institute of Health and
Welfare (AIHW).
The report, Movement from hospital to residential aged
care, shows that in 2001-02 among new admissions for permanent
care, 21,800 people aged 65 and over came from hospitals, while
16,600 came from the community.
'What happens between hospitals and residential aged care has
long been of great community interest,' said report co-author Phil
Anderson.
'Now, through some innovative statistical work, we have been
able to provide some initial answers, although certainly not all
the answers,' he said.
Every year in Australia almost one in 10 of the million or so
hospital discharges for older people are for people who then go
into or return to residential aged care.
The report shows that of all people aged 65 year and over, only
a small proportion (just over 3%) leave hospital to be admitted
into residential aged care and nearly 6% already lived in
residential aged care. People were more likely to move from
hospital to residential aged care for the first time if they:
- had a long stay in hospital (median of 24 days for final
hospital episode compared with 4 days for those returning
home)
- had dementia
- were older, widowed or single
- received palliative or maintenance care prior to hospital
discharge.
The most common diagnosis for people moving into permanent aged
care was 'awaiting admission elsewhere' (21%).
'The wait could have several causes, including the time needed
to enable patients to be assessed for care, and for them and their
families to decide on a move to residential aged care, and to then
find suitable places and make the final choice,' Mr Anderson
said.
In contrast to the situation for permanent aged care, for
residential respite care nearly four times as many people were
admitted from the community as from hospitals (32,000 admissions
compared with 8,600).
Those admitted from hospital were often using the respite care
as a transition to returning home, with just 1% transferring to
permanent care within 12 weeks, and over half having returned home
with one quarter remaining in respite care after 12 weeks.
Canberra, 26 November 2008
Further information: Dr Phil Anderson, AIHW,
tel. 02 6244 1125, mob. 0417 881 017
For media copies of the report: Publications
Officer, AIHW, tel. (02) 6244 1032.
Availability: Check the AIHW Publications area
for the availability of Movement from hospital
to aged care.