Development of a check sheet for understanding and sharing the social and living condition of older people with minor illnesses who are transported to the emergency room by multidisciplinary team

Abstract

Background: Supporting individual needs is essential in community-based comprehensive care, and even in a clinical setting, patients’ social needs may become apparent and require support. However, patients who use an ambulance to visit an emergency department and return home without being hospitalized are rarely provided with support to meet their needs. Therefore, we developed a check sheet to easily identify the social and living condition of older patients who need more care and support among ambulance users with minor illnesses, and to share the information with multidisciplinary professionals.

Methods: A three-round questionnaire survey using the modified Delphi method was conducted to participants, who were paramedics, physicians, nurses, medical social workers, community comprehensive support center staff, and public health nurses.

Results: Twenty-eight participants responded to the first survey (response rate: 100%), and 25 participants responded to the second and third surveys (response rate: 89.3%). A check sheet was made to share 28 items, including living condition, household composition, presence of key person or caregiver, and financial condition.

Conclusion: We will verify the reliability and prediction validity of the items, create an operational protocol, and confirm its effectiveness for practical use.