Volunteers offer “help” to the hospitalized elderly

May 31 , 2007 — Even the most standard hospitalization can be disconcerting.

But for more than 2 million older Americans each year, it can be so bewildering that they become disoriented, are unable to care for themselves and even develop delirium.

When that happens, more complications are not far behind. Many experience prolonged hospital stays, require long-term care and accumulate millions in healthcare costs. Some even suffer death.

To combat this alarming trend, in January, Chesapeake General became the only hospital in Hampton Roads to participate in a national initiative, called the Hospital Elder Life Program.

The program was created by Yale University medical professor Sharon K. Inouye to improve the hospital experience for older patients by helping them maintain their cognitive and functional abilities.

At the heart of the program are trained volunteers, who visit with the patients and help them with whatever needs they might have – whether it is reading to them, helping feed them or ensuring they get up at appropriate times to get some exercise. The volunteers are guided by a team of multidisciplinary professional gerontology specialists.

“Having someone who devotes some personalized care and attention to them to address a lot of nonmedical needs often does the trick and helps keep these older patients more grounded in reality,” noted Lori Hasty, a nurse who coordinates the program at CGH.

Over the next few months, CGH practitioners will gather information about the hospital’s program as part of a nationwide study on the hospitalized elderly. Their work will be featured in an upcoming article for the American Journal of Medicine, along with information from 14 other hospitals across the country.

Volunteers who are interested in participating in CGH’s H.E.L.P. program can call Volunteer Services at 312-6109.