Special A&E for the over-80s

In parts of Norfolk, one in 11 people is aged over 85 – compared with one in 42 people in the UK as a whole. In December, Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital opened an older people’s emergency department specifically for the over-80s. The A&E treats around 50 elderly patients a day and is staffed by geriatric specialists who help avoid patients being admitted unnecessarily. In its first four months, the scheme led to the proportion of patients treated and discharged in a day improving by 200per cent.