The beneficial effects of joint orthopaedic-geriatric rehabilitation.

A London inner city Health District has had joint orthopaedic geriatric beds (RU) for rehabilitation of elderly orthopaedic patients since 1981. The effect of this on the orthopaedic department was studied by means of Hospital Activity Analysis data for 1980-85. The results showed that in patients greater than or equal to 60 years this approach leads to a significant reduction in length of stay for those with and without the diagnosis of fractured neck of femur and in the numbers staying 60+ days and 90+ days. The combined approach produced a saving of 46% in bed-days for fractured neck of femur alone. The relatively long duration of stay in the acute orthopaedic unit prior to admission to the RU suggests that intervention by the joint approach from the date of admission is required to maximize efficiency.