Nurses Improving Care for Healthsystem Elders (NICHE) has been on my radar for quite awhile. Who or what is NICHE? I’ll let the organization speak to that:

Started in 1992, Nurses Improving Care for Healthsystem Elders (NICHE) is the only national geriatric initiative to improve the care of older hospitalized adults. The NICHE program comprises nearly 300 hospitals throughout North America. NICHE is a program of the Hartford Institute for Geriatric Nursing at New York University College of Nursing.

Recently, I posted an article regarding the hospitalization of elders, noting the negative effect emergency room visits and hospitalizations can have on elders, sometimes to the extent that the trauma tips the scale toward dementia. While I’m still likely to recommend that an elder be treated in a home setting when possible, ER visits and hospitalizations will remain a part of senior life. A recent article posted on the NICHE site shines a hopeful light on senior care in the emergency hospitalization segment of our health care system.

The article titled “Who Loves You, Baby Boomer?,” begins:

In January of this year, just as the first of the Baby Boomers turned 65, six hospitals in Michigan opened Senior Emergency Departments increasing to eight the number of these specialized emergency centers in the state. While Michigan currently holds the record for the number of Senior ERs, it’s not alone in recognizing and responding to the need for emergency facilities dedicated to Americans aged 65 and over.

Changing senior care environments: simply not enough

Vulnerable seniors are in an age group that is easily traumatized by the traditional hospital setting. The setting this article describes, especially set up for seniors, is homelike and quiet:

The six private rooms are softly lit and painted in eye-soothing earth tones. Non-glare, non-skid floors and safety rails cut down on falls, a major cause of injury in hospitalized older patients. Pressure-reducing mattresses decrease the incidence of bedsores, another concern for older patients. Large print signage makes navigating easier.

While adapting the physical environment is important, it’s not enough. “You have to educate the staff in best practices, implement evidence-based protocols and work to change the hospital culture…”

I applaud Michigan and other states that have developed specialized senior emergency rooms. Please read the “Who Loves you, Baby Boomer?” and see what the NICHE group is up to. There are other informative articles at nicheprogram.org, so a stop by their site is worth your while.

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Tags: Caregiving, elderly hospitalizations