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Emergency department service utilisation of older patients with urgent conditions: a cross-sectional observational study.
Koo, Geraldine P Y; Seah, Pei Zhen; Tun, Mon Hnin; Tham, Sinma; Lim, Steven H C.
Afiliación
  • Koo GPY; Department of Emergency Medicine, Changi General Hospital, Singapore, 529889, Singapore. geraldine.koo@mohh.com.sg.
  • Seah PZ; Department of Emergency Medicine, Changi General Hospital, Singapore, 529889, Singapore.
  • Tun MH; Health Services Research, Changi General Hospital, Singapore, 529889, Singapore.
  • Tham S; Singhealth Regional Hospital Network, Singapore, 529541, Singapore.
  • Lim SHC; Department of Emergency Medicine, Changi General Hospital, Singapore, 529889, Singapore.
Int J Emerg Med ; 17(1): 119, 2024 Sep 09.
Article en En | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-39251897
ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND:

As with many countries worldwide, Singapore is experiencing a rapidly ageing population. Presentation of older persons for urgent but non-emergent conditions to the Emergency Department (ED) represents a growing group of patients utilising public healthcare emergency services and puts a strain on current ED resources. The medical conditions vary, and resources used has been poorly characterized.

METHODS:

This is a single-center cross-sectional observational study of patients aged 55 to 75 years old who visited the ED with urgent conditions, Patient Acuity Category Scale (PACS) P2 or P3, who were subsequently discharged. The patients visited a public hospital in Singapore on four randomly selected weekdays in April 2023. The utilisation of hospital resources and manpower was studied. A formulated criteria was used to determine the appropriate site of care, such as an Urgent Care Centre (UCC), Primary Care Providers (PCP) clinic or the ED.

RESULTS:

There were 235 eligible patients during the study period, with a mean age of 65.1 years of which a majority, 183 (77.9%) were allocated to patient acuity category scale P2. Most of the patients were walk-in patients with no referrals (169 (71.9%)). Based on the criteria, the majority of 187 (79.6%) of these patient may be safely managed at an outpatient setting; 71 (30.2%) patients by PCP, 116 (49.4%) patients may be managed by an UCC, with the remaining 48 (20.4%) requiring ED care.

CONCLUSION:

Our findings indicate that a significant portion of discharged older ED adults with urgent but non-emergent conditions may be adequately managed at outpatient medical services that are appropriately resourced. More research is needed on healthcare initiatives aimed at developing the capabilities of outpatient medical services to manage mild to moderate acute conditions to optimise ED resource allocation.
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Texto completo: 1 Colección: 01-internacional Base de datos: MEDLINE Idioma: En Revista: Int J Emerg Med Año: 2024 Tipo del documento: Article País de afiliación: Singapur Pais de publicación: Reino Unido
Texto completo
Añadir a Mi BVS
Imprimir
XML
PubMed Links
Buscar en Google

Texto completo: 1 Colección: 01-internacional Base de datos: MEDLINE Idioma: En Revista: Int J Emerg Med Año: 2024 Tipo del documento: Article País de afiliación: Singapur Pais de publicación: Reino Unido