Introduction Telemedicine may help improve older adults' access, health outcomes, and quality of life indicators. This review aims to provide current evidence on the effectiveness of telemedicine in the aged population. Method A systematic literature search was conducted in PubMed, Google Scholar, and Web of Science electronic databases between January 2015 and September 2021 using the keywords “telemedicine” or “telehealth” and “older people” or “geriatrics” or “elderly.” The articles were classified under three headings according to the purposes: feasibility, diagnosis and management of chronic diseases, and patient satisfaction. Results A total of 22 articles were included. Across most disciplines, evidence has shown that telemedicine is as effective as usual care, if not more so, in the feasibility, chronic disease management, and patient satisfaction of the elderly. However, a few studies reported challenges such as difficulty with technology, hearing problems, and the inability to perform hands-on examinations for physicians. Conclusion Findings from this review support the view that health care providers can use telemedicine to manage elderly individuals in conjunction with usual health care. However, future research is needed to eliminate barriers to increasing telemedicine use among older adults.
Background
Transitional care is a key area of care provision to older people with chronic and complex health conditions and is associated with the quality of care delivered in the healthcare system.
Aims
This study aimed to explore the perspectives of healthcare providers, including nurses and physicians, regarding transitional care from hospital to home in an urban area of Turkey.
Methods
A qualitative study using a thematic analysis method was carried out. In‐depth semi‐structured interviews were held with eight clinical nurses and five general physicians involved in the provision of healthcare services to older patients in the transitional care process from hospital to home.
Findings
The thematic analysis of in‐depth semi‐structured interviews with 13 healthcare professionals led to the development of the following themes: ‘uninterrupted chain of care transfer’, ‘commitment to meet patient’s needs’ and ‘support and removing ambiguities’.
Conclusions
Key factors impacting on the quality and safety of transitional care and continuity of healthcare are communication and collaboration between healthcare staff and settings, and older patients’ as well as family caregivers’ awareness and their feelings of responsibility towards the continuity of care at home.
In this pilot study, addition of vildagliptin to ongoing metformin therapy in elderly with diabetes was accompanied by stable cognitive and functional performance after almost one year of follow-up.
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