PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

West Health and UC San Diego Health partnership helps California lead nation with most accredited geriatric emergency departments

Nearly 3 million older Californians now have nearby access to specialized and comprehensive emergency care

2024-08-07
(Press-News.org) SAN DIEGO – AUGUST 7, 2024 – West Health and UC San Diego Health announced today that nearly three million older adults in California now have access to specialized care for medical emergencies, making the state the nation’s leader in accredited geriatric emergency departments (GEDs). Nearly half of the state’s seniors now have access to a GED compared to about 30% of seniors nationwide. 

UC San Diego Health and West Health collaborated and collectively engaged more than 650 health professionals from more than 200 area hospitals over the course of the initiative, which began five years ago when California only had a handful of accredited GEDs spread across the state. Today, the number has grown to nearly 100, with an additional 30 sites expected to earn accreditation in the coming year. In 2022, San Diego became the first county in the U.S. where every eligible hospital earned GED accreditation.

This successful collaboration started with the opening of the Gary and Mary West Senior Emergency Care Unit (SECU) at UC San Diego Health in La Jolla, California. The SECU was the first “gold” accredited GED west of the Mississippi, establishing UC San Diego Health as national experts on the GED model. UC San Diego Health shared their expertise by providing county- and state-wide education and efforts that quickly helped expand the reach of GEDs throughout California and beyond. Activities included specialized geriatric training, review of best practices, quality improvement, guidance on achieving accreditation, and peer-to-peer learning.

“We are proud of our partnership with UC San Diego Health. We’re getting closer to ensuring that all seniors have access to geriatric emergency care no matter where they live and California is leading the way,” said Shelley Lyford, CEO and Chair, West Health and a commissioner on the California Commission on Aging. “The GED movement is in full swing and every day more and more states are jumping on board. It’s making a material difference in the lives of seniors and their families.”

The American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) recently announced more than 500 GEDs have been accredited globally, with 457 in the United States.

“UC San Diego Health recognized a truly unique opportunity with West Health that would significantly improve the patient experience in an area of care that continues to expand exponentially,” said Patty Maysent, CEO of UC San Diego Health. “This milestone underscores the growing impact of our collaboration. We are grateful to partner with West Health to create a new transformative offering for geriatric patients to get them healthy, happy, and home sooner.”

“Sharing a vision with West Health has led to a significant mission to provide specialized care for older adults in the emergency room setting," said Vaishal Tolia, MD, MPH, FACEP, professor of Clinical Emergency and Internal Medicine at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine and medical director of the Emergency Department at UC San Diego Health. “From admission to discharge, the goal is to always deliver high quality and compassionate care to help reduce hospital visits and readmissions. It is an honor that our efforts are changing how our older loved ones are being cared for.”

Seniors frequently present at the emergency department with a range of issues, including the acute medical emergency, struggles with frailty and mobility issues, cognitive decline and dementia, as well as other diseases and conditions that make them more vulnerable to medical emergencies.

In a GED, interdisciplinary teams engage in best practices involving triage, screening, evaluation, treatment, discharge, physical environment and, when necessary, coordination of essential social and health services. GEDs have the ability to reach outside a hospital’s four walls to integrate acute care with essential community supports, services, and programs, such as home care, meal delivery, long-term care facilities, and networks supporting older adults living with Alzheimer’s and related dementias.

Seniors are more likely than any other age group to visit the emergency department, a trend that is only expected to grow with the aging of America. Currently, 16.5% of the U.S. population, or 54 million people, are 65 or older, according to the latest U.S. Census. By 2030, that number is expected to rise to 74 million, accounting for about 20% of the population. Encouraging hospitals to implement the GED model is an essential step in preparing for this shift in our population and an integral part of Governor Gavin Newsom’s California’s Master Plan for Aging.

"Working with the West Health Institute and the Governor’s task force for Master Plan for Aging has been a fantastic opportunity and meets our University of California mission to educate health care leaders to achieve GED accreditation," said James Killeen, MD, clinical professor of Emergency Medicine at UC San Diego School of Medicine and director of Urgent Care Services at UC San Diego Health.

To learn more about GED accreditation, visit https://www.acep.org/geda.

About West Health
Solely funded by philanthropists Gary and Mary West, West Health is a family of nonprofit and nonpartisan organizations including the Gary and Mary West Foundation and Gary and Mary West Health Institute in San Diego, and the Gary and Mary West Health Policy Center in Washington, D.C. West Health is dedicated to lowering healthcare costs to enable seniors to successfully age in place with access to high-quality, affordable health and support services that preserve and protect their dignity, quality of life and independence. Learn more at westhealth.org and follow @westhealth.

About UC San Diego Health
UC San Diego Health, the region’s only academic health system, is dedicated to delivering outstanding patient care through commitment to community, groundbreaking research and inspired teaching. For 2024-25, U.S. News & World Report ranked UC San Diego Health as the best hospital system in San Diego and among the nation’s best in 11 adult medical and surgical specialties, including cancer, cardiology, geriatrics, neurology, orthopedics and pulmonology. It is the first health system in San Diego County to make the Honor Roll for outstanding patient care. The 1,101-bed health system includes three hospitals — Hillcrest Medical Center, Jacobs Medical Center and East Campus Medical Center — as well as Sulpizio Cardiovascular Center, Moores Cancer Center, Shiley Eye Institute, Koman Family Outpatient Pavilion and Altman Clinical and Translational Research Institute. The health system also includes primary care and same-day services at clinics throughout Southern California.

For more information, visit health.ucsd.edu.

 

###

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Social rank may determine if animals live fast, die young

Social rank may determine if animals live fast, die young
2024-08-07
Anyone who has picnicked on the beach has experienced the unpleasant crunch of a sandwich with a surprise helping of sand. But for primates, the tolerance for sand may depend on whether their energy is better spent reproducing and fighting rivals or on protecting their teeth from a mouthful of grit, according to a new Dartmouth study. Social rank may determine whether animals prioritize immediate energy consumption over long-term health, or vice versa, the researchers report in the journal eLife. They observed the eating habits of long-tailed ...

Cutting-edge 3D-printed microneedle technology revolutionizes remote healthcare

2024-08-07
Los Angeles, California – August 6, 2024 - In a significant leap forward for healthcare equity and accessibility, researchers at the University of Victoria and the Terasaki Institute for Biomedical Innovation (TIBI) have developed a revolutionary system that combines remote health monitoring and drug delivery using 3D-printed hollow microneedles. This innovative approach, detailed in a recent study published in Advanced Healthcare Materials, promises to transform healthcare delivery, particularly for those in underserved or remote regions. The ...

Blood test can help predict chronic lung disease in preterm babies

2024-08-07
A blood test can help predict which preterm babies will go onto develop chronic lung disease, allowing for earlier diagnosis and more targeted treatments, according to a new study. The research, led by Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI) and published in the American Journal of Respiratory Cell and Molecular Biology found that changes in certain blood proteins, alongside gestational age, birth weight and sex, strongly predicated bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) within 72 hours of life. BPD usually occurs when a baby’s lungs are damaged by respiratory support and the long-term ...

Demystifying APE1: New findings on direct activation of ATM signaling by DNA single-strand breaks

Demystifying APE1: New findings on direct activation of ATM signaling by DNA single-strand breaks
2024-08-07
New research from a team of genome scientists and DNA damage response experts breaks new ground in understanding the function of a protein currently limited in clinical trials for cancer treatments. Led by Haichao Zhao, PhD, in the Yan Lab at UNC Charlotte, the new research shows how ATM-mediated signaling is induced by DNA single-strand breaks (SSBs) for DNA damage repair – illuminating the distinct mechanisms of SSB-induced ATM kinase and shedding an important light on APE1 function. In the new study, published today in Nature Communications, ...

Study suggests an MRI may help doctors predict more aggressive prostate cancer in patients

Study suggests an MRI may help doctors predict more aggressive prostate cancer in patients
2024-08-07
SOUTHFIELD, MI, Aug. 7, 2024 - New Corewell Health™ research suggests an MRI scan can help predict whether patients with intermediate-risk prostate cancer (cancer confined to the entire prostate) may have more aggressive cancer in five years. Knowing this could potentially help doctors determine if treatment is needed up front vs. using a method called active surveillance where the disease is closely monitored over time. The study, recently published in the Journal of Urology, is the first to evaluate this risk group. Currently, there has been a growing trend to manage low-risk prostate cancer patients with active ...

FDA approves drug targeting Johns Hopkins-discovered brain cancer gene mutation

FDA approves drug targeting Johns Hopkins-discovered brain cancer gene mutation
2024-08-07
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE A new drug for treatment of a type of brain cancer, called IDH-mutant low-grade glioma, was approved Aug. 6 by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The promising new drug stems from a 2008 genetic discovery made at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center.  The drug, called vorasidenib, is a targeted cancer therapy that works by inhibiting the activity of a mutated gene called IDH, slowing the growth of the cancer.  The gene was identified by Bert Vogelstein, M.D., and team at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center’s ...

LOINC® semiannual release: Global partners collaborate to enhance semantic interoperability with health terminology updates

2024-08-07
INDIANAPOLIS -- Regenstrief Institute’s latest LOINC® content update underscores significant strides in health terminology, accomplished through extensive collaboration with the international health community. The semiannual release aims to bolster the electronic exchange of clinical and laboratory data, fostering the use and implementation of LOINC standards across healthcare systems globally.  The Regenstrief Institute Health Data Standards (HDS) unit, which administers LOINC, and partners collaborated to create more than 3,000 updates, including ...

Researchers show pesticide contamination is more than apple skin deep

Researchers show pesticide contamination is more than apple skin deep
2024-08-07
Pesticides and herbicides are critical to ensuring food security worldwide, but these substances can present a safety risk to people who unwittingly ingest them. Protecting human health, therefore, demands sensitive analytical methods to identify even trace levels of potentially harmful substances. Now, researchers reporting in ACS’ Nano Letters have developed a high-tech imaging method to detect pesticide contamination at low levels, and its application on fruits reveals that current food safety practices ...

Current challenges evaluated for measuring and treating fatigue in multiple sclerosis

Current challenges evaluated for measuring and treating fatigue in multiple sclerosis
2024-08-07
East Hanover, NJ – August 7, 2024 – Kessler Foundation research scientist John DeLuca, PhD, has published a significant clinical article in Journal of Neurology, shedding light on the elusive nature of fatigue in multiple sclerosis (MS) and its implications for treatment. The study provides a comprehensive review of current challenges in defining, measuring, and treating MS-related fatigue, offering new insights and directions for future research. The open access article, “Fatigue in multiple sclerosis: can we measure it and can we treat it?” (Doi: 10.1007/s00415-024-12524-9), was published on July ...

Disparities found in survival benefits for people receiving bystander CPR for cardiac arrest

2024-08-07
A National Institutes of Health (NIH)-supported study has found race- and sex-based differences in the increased chances of survival from people who received bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Average survival benefits for cardiac arrest, when the heart suddenly stops beating, could be three times as high for white adults compared to Black adults and twice as high for men compared to women. The findings published in Circulation.   “CPR saves lives — that, we know,” said Paula Einhorn, M.D., a program officer at NIH’s National, Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

KAIST Develops Retinal Therapy to Restore Lost Vision​

Adipocyte-hepatocyte signaling mechanism uncovered in endoplasmic reticulum stress response

Mammals were adapting from life in the trees to living on the ground before dinosaur-killing asteroid

Low LDL cholesterol levels linked to reduced risk of dementia

Thickening of the eye’s retina associated with greater risk and severity of postoperative delirium in older patients

Almost one in ten people surveyed report having been harmed by the NHS in the last three years

Enhancing light control with complex frequency excitations

New research finds novel drug target for acute myeloid leukemia, bringing hope for cancer patients

New insight into factors associated with a common disease among dogs and humans

Illuminating single atoms for sustainable propylene production

New study finds Rocky Mountain snow contamination

Study examines lactation in critically ill patients

UVA Engineering Dean Jennifer West earns AIMBE’s 2025 Pierre Galletti Award

Doubling down on metasurfaces

New Cedars-Sinai study shows how specialized diet can improve gut disorders

Making moves and hitting the breaks: Owl journeys surprise researchers in western Montana

PKU Scientists simulate the origin and evolution of the North Atlantic Oscillation

ICRAFT breakthrough: Unlocking A20’s dual role in cancer immunotherapy

How VR technology is changing the game for Alzheimer’s disease

A borrowed bacterial gene allowed some marine diatoms to live on a seaweed diet

Balance between two competing nerve proteins deters symptoms of autism in mice

Use of antifungals in agriculture may increase resistance in an infectious yeast

Awareness grows of cancer risk from alcohol consumption, survey finds

The experts that can outsmart optical illusions

Pregnancy may reduce long COVID risk

Scientists uncover novel immune mechanism in wheat tandem kinase

Three University of Virginia Engineering faculty elected as AAAS Fellows

Unintentional drug overdoses take a toll across the U.S. unequally, study finds

A step toward plant-based gelatin

ECMWF unveils groundbreaking ML tool for enhanced fire prediction

[Press-News.org] West Health and UC San Diego Health partnership helps California lead nation with most accredited geriatric emergency departments
Nearly 3 million older Californians now have nearby access to specialized and comprehensive emergency care