Need assessment and operational feasibility indices for a geriatric inpatient facility in a tertiary care teaching hospital

ABSTRACT

The world is facing a situation without precedent that soon we will have a greater proportion of older people than children and more number of people at extremes of age than ever before. With a rise in the number of older people and increased life expectancy, extended periods of good health, a sustained sense of well-being, improved social engagement and increased productivity accompanied by fewer illnesses, decreased disability, dependency, and reduced healthcare cost are of primary importance. Geriatric illnesses such as non-communicable diseases, mental health problems, and failing health are the priority areas that require continuum of care. However, this is encountered with challenges in providing care such as lack of proper referral mechanism, absence of social security, and transportation issues. This paper aims to perform a need assessment for a separate geriatric inpatient facility as perceived by the geriatric patients. Further, we have discussed the metrics pertaining to infrastructure, manpower, and finances required to set up such a facility.

KEYWORDS:

• Elderly
• geriatric care
• geriatric inpatient
• operational feasibility
• need assessment

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Dr. C. K. Vasudha is a student trainee in the field of health care management.

Ms. Bryal Dsouza, has expertise in Hospital Administration and her area of interest is in health care quality.

Dr. Bhaskaran Unnikrishnan is expert in the field of health systems research specially in the area of health insurance.

Dr. Rajesh Kamath's area of interest is in the field of health care financing.

Dr. Nikitha is a student trainee in the field of health care management.

Notes

1 List does not include additional desirable equipment. Only essential equipment which are compulsorily required for functioning are mentioned.