Volume 8, Issue 10: Frailty and Acute Frailty Syndromes

Frailty and Acute Frailty Syndromes – nothing left in the tank…

You are watching the clock tick over the final minute of your meal break when a job comes through – an 88 year old male ‘stuck in his chair’. On arrival you find a waifish male sitting in a deep low chair; a walking stick is hung over the armrest and there’s a walking frame tucked away in the corner. His carer welcomes you in but doesn’t know him well… What is the best way to assess and manage this patient?

CPD Benefit

The British Geriatrics Society estimate that 10% of people over the age of 65 live with frailty, with this percentage rising to 25–50% of people over 85 years. Frailty is defined as a vulnerability to stressors that would not stress the non-frail person. This article shows you how to make a thorough clinical assessment including use of the Clinical Frailty Scale and the AMT4 score. The article also discusses how to effectively manage the frail patient, maintaining a balance between providing treatment and maintaining independence.

Assessment Answers and References

You can check your answers to the quiz and download the references for this article by clicking the links below:

Standby CPD – Vol. 8 No. 10 – References

Standby CPD Volume 8 – Assessment Answers