GHA frailty pathway delivers improved care and shorter hospital stays for older patients

The Minister for Health and Care, Gemma Arias Vasquez, has welcomed early results from the Gibraltar Health Authority’s new Frailty Pathway, which is delivering improved care and shorter hospital stays for older and more frail patients.

The pathway, introduced earlier this year, is a coordinated model of care that brings together an expert multidisciplinary team to assess, manage and support frail individuals at the earliest possible stage. It is designed to enable proactive intervention and prevent deterioration in patients, with the GHA already reporting significant improvements in care and measurable reductions in hospital length of stay.

Under the new system, every individual presenting to Accident and Emergency now receives a frailty score between one and nine, with nine being the most severe. This is intended to ensure that frailty is recognised immediately and acted upon.

Those who do not require admission are offered structured frailty follow-ups, including home visits with occupational therapists and physiotherapists or clinical appointments with doctors, so that they remain within the system and are not lost to follow-up.

Frail individuals are provided with tailored holistic support from a coordinated team of professionals, including doctors, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, nurses and social workers. The Gibraltar Health Authority said this multidisciplinary approach is aimed at ensuring that each person receives the right care from the right professional at the right time.

Since the pathway was introduced, the GHA has observed a clear trend of shorter hospital stays for frail patients. All patients over the age of 83, or those with a frailty score of five or above, now automatically receive a comprehensive geriatric assessment to support faster decision-making, discharge planning and community support.

The Minister for Health and Care, Gemma Arias Vasquez, said: “This pathway is already transforming outcomes for some of the most vulnerable people in our community.”

“By identifying frailty early and coordinating care across a specialist team, we are seeing quicker recoveries, shorter hospital stays and a more compassionate and proactive approach to elderly care.”

“I want to thank every member of the GHA staff who is contributing to this important improvement. The aim has to be to support our elderly and frail in the best way possible and to ensure that they can live at home and independently for as long as possible.”