Objective To evaluate the efficacy of the diagnosis and treatment mode named modified early warning score (MEWS) of pre-referral assessment followed by ward round by geriatric interdisciplinary team (GIT) on clinical outcomes in the patients after referral from emergency or observation room. Methods The elderly patients admitted in the emergency or observation room of Central Hospital of Songjiang District and Shanghai First People’s Hospital (South Hospital) and then transferred to the Department of Geriatrics of Ledu Hospital of Songjiang District from November 2012 to October 2013 were recruited in this study. The observation group was given our mode named MEWS of pre-referral assessment and ward round by GIT afterwards, while the control group was treated with the conventional medical mode. The mean hospital stay, recovery rate, mortality, medical expenses, rehospitalization rate and family satisfaction were compared between the 2 groups. Results Among the 306 referral patients, 156 patients were assigned randomly to the observation group and received our medical mode. Of them, 150 cases were discharged after improvement (96.2%), and 1 case died (0.64%). For the other 150 cases (control group), 134 cases were discharged after improvement (89.1%), and 3 cases died (2.0%). The observation group had an average hospital stay of (17.7±13.1)d, improvement rate of 96.2%, average medical cost of (8275.32±4680.33) yuans (RMB), the re-hospitalization rate of 1.28%, and the family satisfaction of 95.5%, which were all better than those in the control group (P＜0.05). Conclusion The elderly is in high demand for hospitalization. Our mode MEWS of pre-referral assessment followed by GIT ward round is an effective measure for medical management in the elderly with multiple co-morbidities, and will provide continuity of medical services and improve the satisfaction of patients and their families in clinical practice.