Hospital admissions from residential aged care facilities to a major public hospital in South Australia (1999-2005)

Abstract

To describe admissions patterns of residential aged care facility (RACF) residents admitted to a major public hospital. Retrospective longitudinal study linking hospital admissions and the Department of Health and Ageing RACF provider data from July 1999 to June 2005. All permanent residents of aged care facilities in South Australia admitted to a single public hospital. Description of primary diagnoses and trends. There were 3310 admissions from 147 RACFs across South Australia. The most frequent primary diagnoses were fractured femur/pelvis, pneumonia and ischaemic heart disease. Two diagnoses increased significantly with an 11% annual increase for infections and a 5% increase for femur fractures. Admissions from RACFs to a major South Australian public hospital are increasing primarily because of admissions for femur fractures and infections in high care. These conditions could be targeted for interventions to reduce hospital admissions.