Use of Emergency Care Unit by Community Elderly People Elaine Ribeiro Olímpio, Letícia Nóvoa Gomes Pousa, Sheila de Melo Borges

Abstract

This paper aims to  analyze the profile of elderly users in the Basic Health Units attended by Emergency Care Unit in the last 12 months, and to verify the health reasons that led them to seek this service. This is a descriptive, cross-sectional observational study that integrates the project entitled "Fragility Syndrome: Identification and monitoring of vulnerability in elderly users of Basic Health Units in the city of Santos / São Paulo". In order to contemplate the objectives of the present study, data on the sociodemographic questionnaire, health information, and information on the use of the Emergency Care Unit in the last 12 months were selected. 296 elderly people participated, of which 228 (77%) were female, with the median age of 73 years, 142 (48%) used the Emergency Care Unit. Of the 142 elderly patients requiring UPA care, 71 (50%) elderly patients used only once in this period, being the pain (n = 27 19%) one of the most prevalent reasons for service demand, followed by changes in blood pressure (n = 18, 12.7%). A little less than half of the elderly patients needed care in the Emergency Care Unit, is the pain the most prevalent reason for this care, followed by the reason for the alteration of blood pressure.