Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40150878›Full record

ArticleHealth expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy2025

Older Adults' Experiences and Expectations of Doctor-Patient Interactions During Early Hospital Care.

George Wells, Kate White, Vasi Naganathan, Natalie Ambrose, Janani Thillainadesan

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Building Trust in a Newly Established Physician-Patient Relationship: A Scoping Review.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2026
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

George WellsDepartment of Geriatric Medicine, Concord Hospital, Concord, New South Wales, Australia.
Kate WhiteCancer Care Research Unit, Susan Wakil School of Nursing and Midwifery, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, New South Wales, Australia.
Vasi NaganathanDepartment of Geriatric Medicine, Concord Hospital, Concord, New South Wales, Australia.
Natalie AmbroseDepartment of Geriatric Medicine, Concord Hospital, Concord, New South Wales, Australia.
Janani ThillainadesanDepartment of Geriatric Medicine, Concord Hospital, Concord, New South Wales, Australia.ORCID 0000-0002-5287-7483

Funding

Dr. George Wells was supported by an Early Career Research Award from the Sydney Health Partners Geriatric Medicine Clinical Academic Group. Dr. Janani Thillainadesan was supported by the Royal Australasian College of Physicians Vincent Fairfax Research Fellowship.
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

background'People-centered care' is one of the World Health Organization's six defining features of quality care and recognizes the importance of tailoring healthcare to individual needs. This is particularly important for older patients who are more vulnerable to complications during their hospitalization. The initial medical assessment in hospital is a vital part of any admission, however, the older patient's experience of this is not well understood.

objectiveThe aim of this study was to investigate the perspectives of older patients, exploring their experience and expectations during these critical encounters.

methodsThis was a qualitative study. Semi-structured interviews were conducted at a major teaching hospital in Sydney, Australia with adult inpatients who were > 75 years old, admitted from the Emergency Department, and had multimorbidity, polypharmacy or frailty. Interviews were transcribed and data were thematically analyzed.

resultsThe 20 study participants had a median (range) age of 85 (75-95) years and 13 (65%) were frail. Six themes were identified: (1) addressing the presenting complaint, (2) implicit trust, (3) being understood as an individual, (4) kindness and respect, (5) well-informed and sometimes shared decision-making and (6) willingness for challenging conversations.

conclusionsOur findings highlight that older patients expect holistic and individualized care, extending beyond clinical expertise to encompass key professional and interpersonal characteristics such as effective communication, respect and kindness. The next steps are developing ways to upskill doctors in these aspects and involve older people in the development of training and standards to support the delivery of medical care that aligns with their experiences, expectations and preferences. PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: The study design and interview guide were shaped by feedback from a patient and public involvement (PPI) workshop, which informed the interview process. Study findings were also shared with a PPI panel, whose insights were incorporated into this manuscript. As part of a larger research program, these findings will contribute to the co-design of educational interventions aimed at improving health professionals' assessment and management of older hospital patients.

Indexed as

HospitalizationPatient SatisfactionPhysician-Patient RelationsAgedAged, 80 and overAustraliaCommunicationFemaleHospitals, TeachingHumansInterviews as TopicMalePatient-Centered CareQualitative ResearchTrustcommunicationfrailtyhospitalolder adultqualitative

Identifiers

PMID40150878
PMCPMC11949844

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.