09.08.12
NHS could save £500m through emergency admissions
If urgent care was organised more effectively, elderly people would need to spend less time in hospital, a review by the King’s Fund has found.
The report suggests there is scope to reduce the number of overnight stays by 2.3 million. This would free up 7,000 beds, saving the NHS nearly £500m a year.
The think tank has focused on admissions and lengths of stay for over-65s who need urgent care – those admitted via A&E, rather than patients in hospital for routine check-ups or non-emergency operations.
The NHS could minimise admissions by working closely with GPs and health services in the community to help prevent illnesses worsening to the point where patients need emergency help, the report states.
Better integration with social care could speed up discharge and the King’s Fund advocates a whole systems approach rather than piecemeal initiatives.
Report author Candace Imison said: “We have the opportunity to significantly reduce the number and length of hospital stays for older people. This would avoid often destabilising and distressing emergency hospital admissions.
“In a climate where resources are scarce and getting scarcer this will also build a model of care that is far more clinically and financially sustainable.”
Health minister Anne Milton commented: “This report shows that driving up quality is not only good for patients but can also save the NHS money.”
View the report at www.kingsfund.org.uk/publications/emergency_beds
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