Number of older people being admitted to hospital increased by two thirds in a decade

According to the Hospital Episode Statistics: Admitted Patient Care - England 2009/10, the number of patients aged 75 and over has risen by two thirds (66 per cent) in the past decade. The number of 60-74 year olds being admitted also rose by 48 per cent. This compared to an average increase of 38 per cent.

Alzheimer's Society comment:

'It is important we don't accept these steep increases in the number of older people being admitted to hospital as an inevitable consequence of an ageing population. Many of these admissions could be avoided if better help and support was available at an earlier stage, preventing the need for expensive and distressing crisis care later on.

'People with dementia represent a very large proportion of these admissions. As many as one in four people on hospital wards have the condition and many stay in hospital far longer than necessary. Investing in care in the community now would enable many of these people to stay at home for longer and could help save the NHS millions of pounds.'

Ruth Sutherland
Interim Chief Executive
Alzheimer's Society

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