This report provides the global community of hospitality professionals with critical insights into emerging trends and developments, with a particular focus on the future of business travel. Business travellers play a pivotal role within the tourism industry, contributing significantly to international travel, GDP, and business revenues.In light of recent disruptions and evolving challenges, this forward-looking study aims not only to reflect on the past but, more importantly, to anticipate future developments and uncertainties in the realm of business travel. By doing so, it offers strategic insights to help hospitality leaders navigate the ever-evolving landscape of the industry.Key findings from the Yearly Outlook include:• Recovery of International Travel: By 2024, international travel arrivals have surpassed 2019 levels by 2%, signalling a full recovery in the sector. In Amsterdam, there was a 13% decrease in business traveller numbers, offset by an increase in the average length of stay from 2.34 to 2.71 days. Notably, more business travellers opted for 3-star accommodations, marking a shift in preferences.• Future of Business Travel: The report outlines a baseline scenario that predicts a sustainable, personalised, and seamless business travel experience by 2035. This future will likely be driven by AI integration, shifts in travel patterns—such as an increase in short-haul trips, longer stays combining business and leisure—and a growing focus on sustainability.• Potential Disruptors: The study also analyses several potential disruptors to these trends. These include socio-political shifts that could reverse sustainability efforts, risks associated with AI-assisted travel, the decline of less attractive business destinations, and the impact of global geopolitical tensions.The Yearly Outlook provides practical recommendations for hospitality professionals and tourism policymakers. These recommendations focus on building resilience, anticipating changes in business travel preferences, leveraging AI and technological advancements, and promoting sustainable practices within the industry.
Background: Falls in people 65 years and older evaluated in the emergency department are increasing. Of all unintentional injury-related deaths among older people, 55% are due to falls. The impact of falls, especially concerning Dutch older people with the highest proportion of living independently worldwide, is unclear. Objective: To identify the influence of age, gender, health conditions, and type of fall on the severity of injury, hospital length of stay, mortality, and discharge destination. Methods: A total number of 6,084 patients from a comprehensive regional trauma care system, 65 years and older and hospitalized after a fall, were included. Groups were compared for patient-related factors and multivariable logistic regression analysis to explore the consequences. Results: Mean age was 82 years (SD = 8.3), and 70% were female. Most falls (66.4%) were due to "slipping and tripping" or "falls on the same level," 57.4% had Injury Severity Scores between 9 and 12, and 43.3% were discharged home. Higher age and type of fall increased the likelihood of severe injuries. Men experienced shorter hospital stays than women and were less frequently discharged home. Mortality was higher in males (10.8%) than in females (6.7%) and increased with the American Society of Anesthesiologists scores for preexisting health conditions. Conclusion: Advanced age, gender, type of fall, and prior health status play a significant role in the severity of injuries, length of hospital stay, 30-day mortality, and higher discharge destination to care homes in older people hospitalized after a fall.
The admission of patients to intensive care units (ICU) is sometimes planned after a large operation. However, most admissions are acute, because of life-threatening infections or trauma as a result of accidents. Their stay can last from a couple of days to a couple of weeks. ICU patients are often in pain, in fragile health condition, and connected to various devices such as a ventilator, intravenous drip, and monitoring equipment. The resulting lack of mobilization, makes patients lose 1-3% of muscle power for each day they are in the ICU. Within 2 weeks, patients can lose up to 50% of their muscle mass. Early mobilization of ICU patients reduces their time on a respirator and their hospital length of stay. Because of this, ICUs have started early mobilization physical therapy. However, there is a lack of solutions for patients that properly handle fear of movement, are sufficiently personalized to the possibilities and needs of the individual and motivate recurring use in this context. Meanwhile, various technological advances enable new solutions that might bring benefits for this specific use case. Hospitals are experimenting with screens and projections on walls and ceilings to improve their patients’ stay. Standalone virtual reality and mixed reality headsets have become affordable, available and easy to use. In this project, we want to investigate: How can XR-technologies help long-stay ICU patients with early mobilization, with specific attention to the issues of fear of movement, personalization to the individual’s possibilities, needs and compliance over multiple sessions? The research will be carried out in co-creation with the target group and will consist of a state-of-the-art literature review and an explorative study.
