Screening and Interventions for Elder Mistreatment: Geriatric Emergency Department Guidelines 2.0 Systematic Review

Area of Science:

• Geriatrics
• Public Health
• Emergency Medicine

Background:

• Elder mistreatment is a prevalent issue with severe health consequences.
• Emergency departments (EDs) are critical points for identifying and intervening in elder mistreatment.
• Evidence on the effectiveness of ED-based screening and intervention is limited.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review the impact of ED-based screening tools for elder mistreatment.
• To systematically review the impact of ED-initiated interventions for elder mistreatment.

Main Methods:

• Two systematic reviews were conducted following PRISMA 2020 guidelines.
• PICO 1 focused on screening tools for individuals aged 60+ in the ED.
• PICO 2 focused on interventions for patients with suspected elder mistreatment in the ED.

Main Results:

• No studies met the inclusion criteria for either systematic review.
• Searches identified numerous articles, but few underwent full-text review.
• Existing studies lacked comparator groups and outcome measures necessary for inclusion.

Conclusions:

• Significant knowledge gaps exist regarding elder mistreatment screening and intervention in EDs.
• Current evidence is insufficient to inform practice recommendations or guideline development.
• Future rigorous research is essential to address these gaps.