"In the past, whenever the elderly felt unwell, the family members had to take them to the hospital time and time again. Now that the green channel has been established, it has resolved the difficulties of seeking medical treatment for the elderly and reduced the burden of traveling back and forth for family members. The 'five-bed linkage' mode is so excellent!" Recently, resident Chen expressed heartfelt gratitude to the medical staff at the Second Community Health Service Center of Pengpu Town.
It turns out that Chen's father, 96 years old, lives in Shanghai Heyang Pengpu Nursing Home all year round. In his daily life, he requires oral medication for chronic diseases including hypertension and diabetes. These antihypertensive and hypoglycemic drugs can be directly obtained from the Fourth Practice Place at the Second Community Health Service Center of Pengpu Town on the second floor of the nursing home.
However, a few days ago, Chen's father experienced sudden abdominal pain and vomiting. The staff at the nursing home immediately contacted Dr. Liu Lu, a family doctor at the Second Community Health Service Center of Pengpu Town. After the home visit examination, the doctor preliminarily suspected an acute attack of chronic cholecystitis. The "five-bed linkage" mode was promptly initiated and Chen's father was referred to Shanghai Shibei Hospital for treatment through the green channel. Soon enough, Chen's father became in stable condition and returned to the nursing home. The family doctor pays him regular visits for check-ups, which ensures he enjoys his golden years.
Since August this year, Jing'an District has been promoting and implementing the "five-bed linkage" integrated home and community nursing service mode in elderly care institutions across the district in batches. It is a linkage mode where service referral, information exchange, and resource sharing are promoted across home care beds, beds in elderly care institutions, home sickbeds, hospital beds (treatment beds in primary and secondary hospitals in Jing'an District), and palliative care beds (end-of-life care beds). This forms a sustainable linkage mode among the "five beds", effectively solving the pain points of medical and health care in home-based and community-based elderly care. The "five-bed linkage" has benefited not only the elderly but also their family members who bear the intense pressure of caregiving.
It is reported that in order to meet the healthcare needs of the elderly, the nursing home has collaborated with the neighboring Second Community Health Service Center of Pengpu Town to set up a family doctor workstation. It is equipped with an independent medical insurance line and staffed by a team of Western medicine general practitioners, traditional Chinese medicine general practitioners, rehabilitation physicians, public health doctors, rehabilitation technicians, and nurses. Equipped with traditional Chinese medicine diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation equipment, the workstation can directly provide relevant physiotherapy and rehabilitation treatment to the elderly, thus alleviating the inconvenience of traveling to and from the hospital.
"We have found that many elderly people suffer from low back and leg pain, long-term bedriddenness, and dizziness. In response to this, we have implemented traditional Chinese medicine treatments like acupuncture and moxibustion. The feedback from the elderly regarding their treatment has been very positive." said Zhou Wenjia, a family doctor at the Second Community Health Service Center of Pengpu Town providing traditional Chinese medicine treatment for the elderly at the nursing home.
Based on the actual needs of the nursing home, the center conducts training on medical and nursing knowledge from time to time and also provides the elderly with medical services such as preventive healthcare, disease diagnosis and treatment, testing and examination, and health education.
"The 'five-bed linkage' mode has truly bridged the gap between homes, communities, elderly care and medical institutions. It is an effective practice of integrating medical care and elderly care," said Meng Qiong, Director of the Second Community Health Service Center of Pengpu Town in Jing'an District, "In the future, the center will continue to sign cooperation agreements with three other elderly care institutions in the district so that more old people can have access to this welfare service."