[Medium-stay for geriatric patients: a long-stay waiting room or an active rehabilitation unit?]

From May 1979 to April 1980, 223 patients were discharged from a "medium stay" unit (mean length of stay: 45 days) for geriatric patients in Bordeaux (France). The outcome at discharge was established from retrospective data, and the long-term outcome (18 months) through a letter sent to general practitioners (rate of response: 88,5% with, in some instances, a prompting phone-call). The mortality rates were 22,5% in hospitalized patients and 38% in survivors after discharge. When those hospitalized for social reasons only are excluded, 62,9% of the remaining patients returned to their former place of residence at discharge. Moreover, 83% were still living at the same place after 18 months (range: 12-24 months). Considering the patients' ages and the seriousness of their conditions, "medium stay", geriatric units seem efficient in helping to maintain the aged at home.