Health situation analysis of hospitalized Thai older persons in the year 2010.

Background: Thailand has reached an ageing society on account of demographic transitions. Hospitalized elders are susceptible to having detrimental consequences in many aspects. Understanding the situation regarding elders being hospitalized would help allied-healthcare workers to focus and take necessary action on particular issues. Objective: To demonstrate the admission rate of elders, common causes of hospitalization and their mortality rates. Material and Method: Information on illness of inpatients and casualties came from hospitals nationwide and from hospitals withdrawals from the 3 health insurance schemes in fiscal 2010. The data included 96% of the population. The data were analyzed by age groups and burdensome diseases. Results: Elders posed the highest rate of all hospitalization (24.3/100 older persons) and the proportion increased with age. The top three common causes for hospitalization were diseases of respiratory tract (13%), circulatory (12%) and digestive system (11%). Mortality rates were highest in elders with pneumonia (129.7/100,000 persons). Conclusion: Older hospitalization was the highest for all hospitalization ages. Common causes for hospitalization are partly the consequences of modifiable factors. Thus, healthcare providers require extensive effort to enhance education and training to allied-healthcare workers regarding preventive and early diagnosis strategies to those with frequent illnesses. Keywords: Hospitalization, Older person, Thailand