With this distinction, UPMC St. Margaret joins more than 100 hospitals and health systems across the country working to tailor older patients’ goals and preferences to provide the best care possible.
“While our patients are complex with an accumulation of many diseases, the most important thing for good health is to focus on the patient and what matters to them and their caregivers,” said Dr. Elizabeth Mohan, medical director, UPMC St. Margaret Geriatric Care Center. “We are proud to be a part of a national initiative working to redesign health systems to consider the many aspects of care for older adults.”
As part of the Age-Friendly Health Systems initiative, The John A. Hartford Foundation and IHI — in partnership with the American Hospital Association and the Catholic Health Association of the United States — are helping hospitals, including UPMC St. Margaret, implement interventions specifically designed to improve care for older adults.
Becoming an Age-Friendly Health System involves providing a set of four evidence-based elements of high-quality care, known as the “4Ms,” to all older adults at UPMC St. Margaret:
• What Matters: Know each older adult’s health outcome goals and care preferences, including end-of-life care, and align treatments accordingly across care settings.
• Medication: If medication is necessary, use age-friendly medications that do not interfere with other aspects of care.
• Mentation: Prevent, identify, treat and manage dementia, depression and delirium across settings of care.
• Mobility: Ensure older adults move safely every day to maintain function work towards their goals.
The Age-Friendly Health Systems initiative launched in 2017 with a commitment to make 20% of hospitals and health systems in the United States age-friendly by 2020.
Visit the UPMC website to learn more about the UPMC St. Margaret Geriatric Care Center.
