GEDC’s Spotlight Series shares the great work that member organizations are doing in the field of geriatric emergency medicine.
Through the pursuit of GEDA accreditation, implementation of meaningful QI initiatives, and provision of educational resources for clinicians, health systems that take advantage of GEDC membership are setting the standard for outstanding geriatric emergency medicine.
GED Initiative Spotlight: Vituity
Vituity is a 100% physician-owned, democratic partnership that collaborates with healthcare organizations to provide staffing and healthcare solutions that improve patient outcomes. With hundreds of practice locations across eight specialties nationwide, Vituity is positioned to affect positive change in geriatric care. Through a partnership with the West Health Foundation, Vituity is working with a cohort of 22 emergency departments to support their pursuit of GEDA accreditation.
In April 2024, Vituity began a partnership with the West Health to collaborate with emergency departments staffed by Vituity clinicians to implement GEDA accreditation. As an organization that prioritizes patient outcomes, Vituity launched this virtual collaborative to assist 22 emergency departments with implementing initiatives that align with best practices in geriatric emergency medicine.
“This is one additional thing that we can do and use as a healthcare solution for improving the care experience and outcomes for geriatric patients in the emergency department,” said Sukhvir Singh, MD, Vituity’s Geriatric Champion.
Over the course of six months, the 22 emergency departments have participated in the accreditation-focused bootcamp run by Singh. Each emergency department is staffed by a Vituity physician who leads in implementing care processes that will not only be beneficial for older adult patients, but will also help the emergency departments qualify for GEDA accreditation. As part of the process, Vituity hosted a kickoff to explain what GEDA is and why it’s important, as well as to provide tools and resources on how to implement geriatric-specific protocols.
The sites have access to monthly coaching calls to discuss various challenges they’re having and ask questions. The Vituity physicians work as a team with nurses and quality staff members from their organizations, and all team members attend the coaching calls.
“The emergency department is not a great place for a geriatric patient,” Singh said. “It’s stressful, loud, and patients aren’t usually allowed to eat. There are a lot of little things that we could be doing to make the emergency department environment better for older adults, and these emergency departments are recognizing that simple environmental modifications can reduce risk for these patients.”
Singh estimated that half of the sites in the GEDA Collaborative have already submitted for accreditation, and the remaining sites plan to do so before the end of the year. While most sites are pursuing Level 3 GEDA Accreditation, some sites are aiming for Level 2 and Level 1.
Every site in the collaborative must establish three care processes: limiting foley catheter insertion, minimizing NPO status and minimizing the use of restraints. To qualify for GEDA Accreditation, the sites must also implement a fourth care process of their choosing. Examples include falls risk assessments and delirium screening.
Throughout this process, both Vituity and the GEDA Collaborative sites have relied on GEDC resources and expertise to successfully implement these care processes.
“We work very closely with GEDC, and they have a wealth of resources, CME and implementation toolkits,” Singh said. “Everything is compiled in one place, and it makes things very easy and accessible.”
“I would love to do another cohort in the future,” Singh said. “It’s always a possibility.”