The 17‑Hour Turnaround: Rapid, Safe Observation Care for Older Adults

About this episode

This episode discusses the benefits of observation medicine for older adults, featuring insights from Dr. Meredith Busman.

In this GEMCast episode host Dr. Christina Shenvi is joined by Dr. Meredith Busman, Director of Observation Medicine at Corewell Health West in Grand Rapids Michigan, Program Director for the Observation Medicine Fellowship at Emergency Care Specialists, and co-chair of the ACEP Accelerate Observation Medicine: Science and Solutions conference. Observation medicine is an outpatient service that encompasses rapid treatment, assessment, and reassessment of select patients with the hopes of avoiding admission. Learn more about this new and rapidly developing subspecialty of emergency medicine, how ED-directed observation units function, and how they are particularly beneficial for older patients or those with dementia. The care provided in an observation unit uses predetermined protocols and pathways, leading to the notably shorter length of stay (LOS) – Dr. Busmans’ unit has an average LOS of just 17 hours! A rapid turnaround, coupled with efficient care from specialists and multidisciplinary input, leads to better outcomes for patients. In older patients who are susceptible to unfavorable outcomes such as delirium and deconditioning from either ED boarding or inpatient stays, the…

People in this episode

Host: Dr. Christina Shenvi

Guest: Dr. Meredith Busman

Topics covered

• observation medicine
• emergency care
• older adults
• patient outcomes
• healthcare efficiency

Keywords

• observation care
• emergency medicine
• older patients
• dementia
• length of stay
• patient flow
• health outcomes

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Corewell Health West, Emergency Care Specialists, ACEP Accelerate Observation Medicine: Science and Solutions

Places: Grand Rapids Michigan

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