Posters for 2025 Autumn Meeting

Introduction: Hearing aids often appear broken and whether due to the battery or earwax simple fixes can allow patients to hear. This project aimed to improve hearing impaired patients' experience and healthcare by providing support for hearing aids across Elderly Medicine wards in a large teaching hospital in Leeds. Method: A survey evaluated the proportion of patients with non-functional hearing aids, with qualitative questions to evaluate the impact. The first intervention was a toolkit showing how to check if a hearing aid worked, how to fix common issues, to go alongside spare batteries

Introduction: Individuals’ health data is routinely recorded in electronic health records in primary and secondary care. Care homes collect extensive data about residents, and many now use electronic care planning systems. Linked data could be useful in care homes, healthcare and administration, to highlight change in condition, or trends in needs. This project aimed to link individual-level data held in care homes with health data, and co-design dashboards to display this to care homes. Methods: In the DataLoch Trusted Research Environment, in partnership with NHS Lothian, the University of

Introduction Hip fractures in older adults often lead to prolonged disability and reduced quality of life. While baseline physical health is a known predictor of recovery following hip fracture, the underlying causal mechanisms remain poorly understood. There is growing interest in the influence psychosocial factors – for example, psychological resilience – have on recovery. This study examines the relationship between baseline psychological resilience and 12-month recovery of functional outcomes following hip fracture surgery in older patients. Methods A 12-month, multi-centre pilot cohort

Introduction: There is limited evidence regarding the optimal anaesthetic choice for neck of femur (NOF) surgery, particularly in comparing general anaesthesia (GA) versus regional anaesthesia (spinal). While some cohort studies suggest that regional anaesthesia may offer superior post-operative outcomes, including reduced delirium and shorter recovery times, the lack of clear guidelines leaves uncertainty about the best anaesthetic approach for improved patient outcomes. Methods: This audit aimed to assess the impact of GA versus spinal anaesthesia on patient outcomes in NOF surgery. A cohort

Introduction Lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) is the most common reason for people over 65 to undergo surgery, affecting ~10% of the community-dwelling population. Surgery for lumbar spinal stenosis has a variable outcome. We estimated the association between pre-operative patient demographics, surgical variables and patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) with a clinically important change (30% change from baseline) in physical function at 6-months in a large, national registry database. Methods We used data from the British Spinal Registry (2013-2023). Anonymised data included demographics

Introduction: The Northern England Evaluation and Lipid Intensification (NEELI) guidelines recommend that for secondary prevention after stroke and transient ischemic attack (TIA), the lipid profile should be checked within 24 hours of admission and atorvastatin 80 mg should be started once daily. If the starting dose was lower than 80 mg, plans should be made for statin uptitration in three months. The aim is to evaluate adherence to NEELI guidelines on checking lipid profile and prescribing statin therapy for optimal secondary prevention after stroke or TIA. Methodology: This is a

Introduction: To synthesise the evidence available on components of reported rehabilitation interventions following pelvic fragility fracture in older adults and describe outcomes measured. Methods: A scoping review reported according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Scoping Review extension. A systematic search of Cochrane CENTRAL, Embase, MEDLINE and PEDro for studies of rehabilitation among patients 60 years and older with non-pathological pelvic fragility fracture, published up to May 2024. Single case studies were excluded. Screening and study

Introduction The risk of future falls in frail older adults who have fallen once remains high. Therefore, falls harm mitigation strategies are important for falls patients admitted to acute geriatric medicine care. How often Assistive Technology (AT) is offered in this regard is not known. Method A two-part Service Evaluation, Information Governance department approved. 1. Case note audit. Patients admitted to our department with a fall between 1st Sept - 30th Nov 2024. 2. 10 patient questionnaires about AT, completed during admission for a fall (May 2025). Results Audit - 112 returned cases

Introduction: The risk of acute oropharyngeal dysphagia is increased in delirium, and is associated with longer hospital admissions, malnutrition, dehydration and sarcopenia. To promote swallow rehabilitation and facilitate recovery from delirium, nasogastric tubes may be trialled for feeding and medication. Methods: This retrospective observational study of senior health wards in a London hospital identified 24 patients with delirium who had a nasogastric tube inserted for acute dysphagia. Data was collected on the swallow rehabilitation (based on recommended IDDSI levels following assessment

Introduction The Frailty Assessment Unit (FAU) at the University Hospital of North Durham opened in April 2025. This is a hospital-based facility aiming to treat frail patients that can be discharged that day, or transferred to a suitable place of care more rapidly than by standard hospital pathways. Patients mainly come from Accident and Emergency or are referred by GPs. FAU have received pharmacist input since June 2025. Data was collected over a two week period to find the number and type of interventions made by the pharmacist. Method Data collection took place over a 2 week period in July

Introduction: Phacoemulsification is a widely used cataract surgery technique, particularly in older adults, offering significant improvements in vision and quality of life. As the global population ages, understanding the outcomes and risks of this procedure in elderly individuals becomes increasingly important. This review aims to assess the safety, efficacy, and potential complications of phacoemulsification in older adults. Method: A search was conducted across three databases—PubMed, Scopus, and Cochrane—for studies published between 2020 and 2025. Inclusion criteria were studies focusing

1. INTRODUCTION: Knowledge of social history and functional baseline is of paramount importance in Geriatric Medicine. Often a lack of adequate history leads to poor treatment outcomes in patients with advanced frailty. At our hospital, we have tried to identify the possible areas of improvement in collateral history documentation and designed a short and objective proforma that allows any doctor to take a detailed collateral history for geriatric patients. 2. METHOD: We retrospectively reviewed the notes of 30 inpatients in geriatric wards to assess documentation across various domains of

Background This audit was conducted on a Care of the Elderly (COTE) ward in a district hospital focusing on males over 65 years of age who developed acute urinary retention (AUR) during their admission. Introduction AUR is a common emergency in males that is responsible for 30,000 hospital admissions a year. The suboptimal management of AUR can lead to failed TWOC, recurrence of AUR, as well as an increased risk of urinary tract infections and multiple hospitalizations. The aims of this audit were to review management of AUR on a COTE ward over a 3 month period and compared this against NICE

Background: There has been success in implementing frailty education for healthcare professionals, but there remains a need to improve the knowledge and skills of researchers and healthcare professionals to develop, implement and evaluate frailty-focused research. This paper describes how the Australian Frailty Network developed and evaluated a virtual community of practice (VCOP), a proven model for fostering knowledge mobilisation, to support researchers and healthcare professionals in advancing frailty research and practice in Australia. Methods: A survey of prospective members sought to

Abstract Content : Introduction: Emerging and increasing frailty often goes unidentified, and families living with dementia and frailty are missing vital opportunities to receive the right support at the right time. People living with frailty are less able to adapt to stress factors such as acute illness, injury, or changes in their environment, personal or social circumstances, leading to adverse health outcomes and an earlier loss of independence. Method: We have developed a unique and innovative National frailty Consultant Admiral Nurse service to address this concern. This service was

Introduction: The global prevalence of Parkinson's disease, a common neurodegenerative disorder, is rising. Most people with Parkinson's live in low- and middle-income countries, where accessing healthcare is challenging. A growing body of literature has investigated the distribution and experience of Parkinson's disease in Tanzania, yet there remains a need to understand access to healthcare for the condition in this setting. This study aims to qualitatively explore the experience of accessing healthcare for Parkinson's disease in northern Tanzania's Kilimanjaro region. Method: Twenty-seven

Introduction: The assessment of impaired vision is included in falls prevention guidance for older adults but implementation is variable. We conducted a scoping review to better understand current practice and inform future implementation research around vision assessments for older adults attending acute hospitals following a fall. Methods: JBI methodology was followed. MEDLINE, AMED, EMBASE, PsychInfo, CINAHL and WebofScience were systematically searched for literature on the assessment of vision in older adults attending acute hospitals following a fall. Sources eligible for inclusion had a

Introduction Despite the UK’s increasing life expectancy, and increase in the elderly population, there is an overwhelming lack of Geriatricians in the UK; as of 2022, there is only 1 consultant Geriatrician per 8,031 individuals over the age of 65 (BGS, 2023). To meet the complex care needs of this population, there must be a focus on increasing the interest that doctors have towards Geriatric Medicine, with the overall aim being to recruit more doctors into the speciality. Method The aim of this review was to investigate what factors medical students perceive as barriers to pursuing a career

Introduction: Polypharmacy is a major risk for older patients aged 65 and above. Commonly prescribed medications may have anticholinergic properties causing dry mouth, constipation, and urinary retention which can exacerbate delirium in older adults1. ACB scores help quantify the cumulative effect of these medications. ACB scores of three or more are associated with confusion, falls and death2. Aim: To evaluate whether automated alerts of ACB scores help reduce scores and encourage medication reviews in older patients. Method: Over two weeks, automated alerts were set up within the hospital’s