Treatment of residents living in aged care facilities presents a challenge to the traditional model of general practitioner (GP)-patient interactions, which rely on patients having the mobility to visit a GP's rooms, to transport themselves for follow-up tests, and are cooperative in taking medications. Aged care residents lack mobility and rely on caregivers for medications; subsequently treatment is often reactive, based on prescribing medications for known and newly diagnosed conditions. Comprehensive Medical Assessments (CMAs) are available at no cost to residents in aged care. However, less than 30% of the 170,000 residents in aged care have had a CMA conducted. A recent University of Sydney Health Informatics Research and Evaluation Unit study concluded that new models for aged care are warranted and that CMAs should play a central role in developing these new approaches. HealthCube has developed an electronic CMA process that underpins the Preventative Aged Care Service package, which promises to change aged care treatment through a new model of GP-patient engagement.
Keywords: General Practice; Geriatric Assessment; Health Services for the Aged; Physician-Patient Relations; Residential Facilities.