Gerontological Nursing

There are 77 million baby boomers in the U.S; 10,000 turn 65 each day.  By 2030, the number of Americans age 65 and older is expected to reach 70 million or 20% of the population.  While those 65 years of age and older currently comprise only ~13%-14% of the US population, they have much higher rates of healthcare utilization including hospitalizations than other age groups – adults ≥65 yo comprise ~40% of the Medical Center discharges.

In 2010, only ~40% of adult hospitalizations were for ≥65 yo

 

By 2030, only ~40% of adult hospitalizations will be for <65 yo

 

Older adults have higher rates of chronic conditions, hospital-acquired harm events, and readmissions <30 days than other age groups.  As the older adult population grows, there will be a significant increase in the demand for health services that meet their unique needs.  The projected number of older hospitalized patients makes it impractical to segregate all older adults on specific units – such as an ACE Unit.  This implies systematically instilling such principles at every level to ensure the older adult patient receives high-quality, patient-centered care throughout their Medical Center experience, regardless of unit or location.

UCSF Gerontological Nursing Vision Statement: To enhance and sustain the capacity and competency of nursing staff in providing quality, equitable patient-centered care to older adult patients and their families, as well as implementing system-wide improvements in the care of older adults.

To achieve the misison of providing the best quality, equitable and patient-centered care to our older adults, the UCSF Nursing Department has adopted the nationally recognized standards of the Age-Friendly Health System and NICHE care delivery models/frameworks.