ArticleThe European journal of general practice2026
What affects unplanned hospital admissions in older adults according to primary healthcare professionals? A focus group study.
Article in The European journal of general practice, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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.
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.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundUnplanned hospital admissions are distressing for older persons and are associated with a high risk of adverse outcomes and a burden on health systems. Understanding the risk and protective factors for unplanned admissions can help to design new preventive interventions in primary care.
objectivesTo explore primary healthcare professionals' experiences on factors affecting unplanned hospital admissions in community-dwelling older adults and identify opportunities for preventive interventions.
methodsWe performed a focus group study with a purposive sample of Dutch primary healthcare professionals. Four focus groups were conducted with a total of 22 primary healthcare professionals comprising 10 general practitioners (GPs) and 12 other primary healthcare professionals. All focus groups were recorded, transcribed, and thematically analysed.
resultsFactors affecting unplanned admissions were grouped into characteristics of the patient, the healthcare professional, and healthcare organisation. Patient-related risk factors included the presence of chronic conditions, health-seeking behaviour, the presence and capacity of an informal caregiver, and cultural expectations of healthcare. Continuity of care, advance care planning, and professional experience as a GP were identified as mitigating professional-related factors for unplanned admissions. Organisational factors that potentially contributed to unplanned admissions were poor informational continuity, suboptimal care coordination, and lack of alternatives to hospitalisation.
conclusionUnplanned hospital admissions in older adults were perceived to be influenced by patient, healthcare professional, and healthcare organisation-related factors. Strategies such as ensuring broad access to patients' clinical information and treatment wishes, improving personal continuity of care, and structural provision of advance care may contribute to reduce unplanned admissions.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.