[Home visits in geriatrics is beneficial for the elderly]

Experience gained from preadmission home visits to elderly persons in their County of Copenhagen during a period of one year is presented. This investigation is prospective and includes all patients referred by their own general practitioners to the Department for Long-Term Medicine in Glostrup Hospital during the period 1.7.1989-31.8.1990. Forty patients were visited in their homes by a geriatric team. Following primary assessment, ten patients could remain in their homes, two patients were referred for outpatient examination, 18 patients to a day hospital and ten patients for admission. By means of rapid intervention, emergency admissions could be avoided in eight patients. Twenty-seven patients were referred by their general practitioners for admission to a residential department but, in just under two thirds of the cases, an admission could be replaced by a less expensive arrangement. All of the patients were satisfied with the home visit and were pleased to avoid admission to a residential department if this was at all possible.