The plight of the Frail Elderly requiring hospital admission has been well documented in recent years in NHS literature and the media. Following local concerns about the volume of patients waiting at and being transferred from the Royal Victoria Hospital (RVH) Emergency Department in Belfast to the Geriatric Medical Unit in the Belfast City Hospital site( BCH) 1 mile away, it was agreed to set up and test a Direct Admissions Unit for Frail Elderly people over the age of 74years on the local BCH site (BCH-Direct), opening 24/7 from the 15th October 2014.
Aim The primary aims of BCH Direct were to reduce the numbers of Frail Elderly People over the age of 75 attending RVH ED, to reduce the number of these patients being transferred to the BCH site 1mile away and to use the BCH Direct unit as an alternative to ED for this patient group.
