Senior Friendly Hospitals: Development and Application of Criteria: A Descriptive Study

BACKGROUND: The world's population is rapidly aging. Between 2000 and 2050, the proportion of the world's population over the age of 60 will double from about 11% to 22%; more so in the developing countries. The prevalence of frailty and morbidity among the elderly is high. There is a need to assess the “preparedness” of the health care system including hospitals to respond to the needs of the elderly. AIM: 1. To develop criteria for a senior friendly hospital and 2. To assess the feasibility of application of these criteria. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A descriptive study was done at Bangalore, India, involving 100 subjects sampled by purposive sampling. Study population consisted of senior citizens, their caretakers, physicians, hospital support staff, nurses, geriatricians, hospital administrators, and architects. They were interviewed using a validated translated interview schedule. The study consisted of two phases; Phase 1: Developing a checklist to assess senior friendliness of a hospital by using modified Delphi technique. Phase 2: Application of the checklist thus developed to selected hospitals in order to assess the feasibility of administration. The data was then analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) for frequencies, proportions, central tendency and dispersion, interclass reliability, intraclass reliability, and Cronbach's alpha. RESULTS: A checklist containing 44 items to assess the senior friendliness of a hospital was developed. The checklist was found feasible and easy to administer. CONCLUSIONS: The checklist thus developed to assess senior friendliness of a hospital has wider application as it has a potential to be considered for framing senior friendly hospital guidelines/policies.