Quality indicators in the care of older persons in the emergency department: A systematic review of the literature

摘要

Objective A systematic review of the literature was undertaken to assess the methodological quality of existing quality indicators ( QI s) for the emergency department ( ED ) care of older persons. Methods MEDLINE , CINAHL , EMBASE and grey literature were searched. Articles were included if they addressed ED care of persons aged ≥65 years and defined a QI amenable to influence by ED providers. The methodological quality of QI s was assessed using relevant items from the Appraisal of Indicators through Research and Evaluation and the QUALIFY tools. Results Sixty‐one articles were included in the review, with identification of 50 QI s meeting predefined inclusion criteria. Thirty‐six of fifty ED QI s for older persons were process indicators. The appraisal instruments’ total ratings ranged from 39 to 67%, with only 18 QI s scoring 50% or more for all five domains. Conclusion There is a need for a balanced, methodologically robust set of QI s for care of older persons in the ED .