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Is delirium being detected in emergency?
Author(s) -
Traynor Victoria,
Cordato Nicholas,
Burns Pippa,
Xu Yun,
Britten Nicole,
Duncan Kim,
DeVries Loren,
McKin Colleen
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
australasian journal on ageing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.63
H-Index - 34
eISSN - 1741-6612
pISSN - 1440-6381
DOI - 10.1111/ajag.12255
Subject(s) - delirium , audit , medicine , emergency department , medical record , health care , medical emergency , nursing , psychiatry , business , radiology , economic growth , accounting , economics
Objective To report on the use of D elirium C are P athways to screen for and recognise delirium by A ged C are S ervices in E mergency T eams ( ASET s) at five metropolitan hospitals in N ew S outh W ales, A ustralia. Knowledge of delirium and the use of D elirium C are P athways are vital to ensure that older people presenting with delirium receive best practice care. Methods An audit of 205 randomly selected medical records of clients over 65 years presenting to an ASET was conducted. Results Delirium was recorded in the medical records notes of four clients (2%). However, the auditors identified another 27 clients with symptoms of delirium. Conclusions Delirium is still frequently undiagnosed and misdiagnosed in older people presenting to emergency departments. This indicates a need for further education and professional development for and by health‐care practitioners. Only with greater awareness of delirium will the care and health outcomes of older adults presenting with delirium in acute care settings improve.