Discharge to the community of older patients from hospital

Current trends in health-care delivery have led to significant changes in hospital discharge programmes in Britain with particular reference to older people. This state of affairs has prompted debate between those who are accusing hospitals of discharging patients rather too early and those who welcome early discharge in the light of the philosophy of primary nursing. The plight of older people leaving hospital has been a subject of considerable study over the past two decades. This paper examines the latest advances in the debate