What happens when we fail to treat pain early in older adults? What unique considerations arise when managing pain in geriatric patients in the prehospital setting? In this episode of EMS Clinical Brief, Dr. Maia Dorsett is joined by Dr. Tony Rosen, Dr. Aaron Farney, and paramedic Kevin Gustina for a thoughtful conversation about prehospital pain management in older adults, particularly after falls and hip fractures. The discussion explores how untreated pain contributes to delirium, physiologic stress, and downstream complications, while also examining the cultural and operational barriers that often lead to under-treatment in EMS. Through practical examples and a discussion of a regional quality improvement initiative, the episode highlights how small changes in assessment and treatment can meaningfully improve patient outcomes. This is a clinically grounded and deeply human conversation about one of the most common yet overlooked aspects of EMS care.

Learning Objectives:

By the end of this episode, listeners should be able to:

1. Describe the physiologic and clinical consequences of untreated acute pain in older adults, including the relationship between pain and delirium.
2. Discuss unique considerations in geriatric pain management, including altered pharmacology, dementia, multimodal analgesia, and age-adjusted opioid dosing.
3. Identify operational, cultural, and systems-based barriers to effective prehospital pain management and strategies to improve care for older adults with suspected hip fractures.

Resources:

MLREMS Suspected Isolated Hip Fracture Care Bundle: https://www.mlrems.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Care-Bundle-Suspected-Isolated-Geriatric-Hip-Fracture.pdf

References:

1. Thompson, C., Brienza, V. J., Sandre, A., Caine, S., Borgundvaag, B., & McLeod, S. (2018). Risk factors associated with acute in-hospital delirium for patients diagnosed with a hip fracture in the emergency department. Canadian Journal of Emergency Medicine, 20(6), 911-919.
2. Morrison, R. S., Magaziner, J., Gilbert, M., Koval, K. J., McLaughlin, M. A., Orosz, G., ... & Siu, A. L. (2003). Relationship between pain and opioid analgesics on the development of delirium following hip fracture. The Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences, 58(1), M76-M81.
3. De Simone, B., Chouillard, E., Podda, M., Pararas, N., de Carvalho Duarte, G., Fugazzola, P., ... & Catena, F. (2024). The 2023 WSES guidelines on the management of trauma in elderly and frail patients. World journal of emergency surgery, 19(1), 18.
4. McGuire, S. S., Brown, C. S., Palmer, A. K., Jeffery, M. M., Mullan, A. F., Stanich, J. A., ... & Bellolio, F. (2026). The Downstream Effects of Prehospital Opioid Dosing in Older Adults: A Retrospective Cohort Study. Academic Emergency Medicine, 33(4), e70294.
5. Hughes, J. A., Alexander, K. E., Spencer, L., & Yates, P. (2021). Factors associated with time to first analgesic medication in the emergency department. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 30(13-14), 1973-1989.