Length of hospital stay for first hospitalised falls
The average length of hospitalisation for people living with dementia who experienced a first hospitalised fall was shorter for people living in residential aged care (6–7 days, Table S16) compared with those living in the community (20–25 days, Table S7. This reflects findings from previous Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) reports including:
- Transitions to residential aged care after hospital for people living with dementia which showed that people living with dementia in the community often had longer hospital stays when awaiting entry to residential age care
- Hip fracture care pathways in Australia which showed that for people aged 45 and over who experienced a first hip fracture hospitalisation, the majority of which were caused by a fall-related injury, the length of hospital stay was over 3 times longer for those living in the community than for those living in residential aged care.
While the scope of the present study did not include exploring care received following hospital discharge, these findings may reflect the increased support available to people living in residential age care, compared with those in the community, allowing them to return home sooner.