Davison Neve, Hammarberg Karin, Tran Thach, Collyer Taya A, Lowthian Judy, Kirkman Maggie, Fisher Jane, Dwyer Rosamond, Layton Natasha
Global and Women's Health, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
National Centre for Healthy Ageing, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Australas J Ageing. 2025 Jun;44(2):e70033. doi: 10.1111/ajag.70033.
Little is known about the psychosocial care of older people presenting to the emergency department (ED), or whether their psychosocial well-being during and after an ED admission can be enhanced. People over the age of 65 years experiencing psychosocial distress and mental health concerns have higher rates of ED admission than those without. As part of a larger mixed-methods study investigating the relationships between older people's psychosocial well-being and emergency care, this study aimed to explore the experiences of older people in ED and their influence on patient psychosocial well-being.
Participants aged 65 years or older receiving care in a large Australian public hospital ED were invited to participate in a telephone interview soon after discharge. Interviews were audio recorded and transcribed. Transcripts were analysed thematically.
Eleven people (five women) aged 68-87 years participated in semi-structured interviews. Analyses revealed three overarching themes: 'interpersonal interactions', 'quality of care' and 'physical environment'. The theme 'interpersonal interactions' had two subthemes: 'communication' and 'human contact'. The three subthemes of 'quality of care' were 'appropriate care', 'psychological care' and 'unmet needs'. Physical environment referred to participant impressions of the ED setting.
We found that staff sensitivity in their interactions with patients and their efforts to promote patients' physical comfort and protect their privacy influenced the psychosocial well-being of older adults in the ED. Based on the findings, we present a set of recommendations for enhancing the psychosocial care of older adults during ED admission.
对于前往急诊科（ED）就诊的老年人的心理社会护理，以及在急诊科就诊期间及之后他们的心理社会幸福感能否得到提升，人们了解甚少。65岁及以上经历心理社会困扰和心理健康问题的人群，其急诊科就诊率高于未经历这些问题的人群。作为一项更大规模的混合方法研究的一部分，该研究旨在探讨老年人在急诊科的经历及其对患者心理社会幸福感的影响，该研究调查了老年人心理社会幸福感与急诊护理之间的关系。
邀请在澳大利亚一家大型公立医院急诊科接受护理的65岁及以上参与者在出院后不久参加电话访谈。访谈进行录音并转录。对转录文本进行主题分析。
11名年龄在68 - 87岁之间的人（5名女性）参与了半结构化访谈。分析揭示了三个总体主题：“人际互动”、“护理质量”和“物理环境”。“人际互动”主题有两个子主题：“沟通”和“人际接触”。“护理质量”的三个子主题是“适当护理”、“心理护理”和“未满足的需求”。物理环境指的是参与者对急诊科环境的印象。
我们发现工作人员在与患者互动中的敏感性以及他们为促进患者身体舒适和保护其隐私所做的努力，会影响急诊科老年患者的心理社会幸福感。基于这些发现，我们提出了一系列在急诊科就诊期间加强老年患者心理社会护理的建议。
