Hospital Emergency Rooms Struggle to Serve Older Adults
Emergency departments across the U.S. are experiencing growing pains when it comes to caring for older patients. Lengthy wait times and boarding periods have increased considerably, raising concerns about patient well-being and healthcare system functionality.
Surging Wait Times
Between 2017 and 2024, the amount of time older adults spent in emergency departments dramatically increased, according to recent research. This trend highlights the challenges hospitals face nationwide. Extended stays are associated with higher risks of adverse events and treatment delays.
In 2017, 12% of older adults waited in the ED for more than eight hours. By 2024, that figure had risen to 20%. The most dramatic increase occurred in academic hospitals, where prolonged stays jumped from 22% to 36% over the same period. Boarding times also rose, with the largest increases again seen in academic hospitals.
“Worsening ED LOSs [lengths of stay] and boarding contribute to ED crowding, reflect systemic health care dysfunction, and, most importantly, harm individual patients,”
— The Researchers
A new report shows that hospitals are facing increased patient complexity, demand, and staffing shortages. According to the CDC, emergency department visits have risen by 20% in the last decade, putting immense strain on resources. (CDC 2024)
Efforts to Improve Care
To address these issues, CMS implemented the Age-Friendly Hospital Measure in January 2025. This measure requires hospitals to limit ED stays to under eight hours, and ensure admissions occur within three hours of the decision. However, national data on these measures have been lacking.
Researchers analyzed data from 1633 hospitals. They examined two key metrics for patients aged 65 and older: the proportion with an ED stay over eight hours and the proportion of admitted patients waiting more than three hours.
Although the study has some limitations, Dr. Haimovich and fellow researchers are confident in their findings, emphasizing the need to improve the ED experience for older Americans.