Retrospective Analyses of Frequent Emergency Department Users

• Main Authors: Gülşah Çıkrıkçı Işık, Meral Tandoğan, Tuba Şafak, Yunsur Çevik
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Galenos Yayinevi 2020-06-01
• Series: Eurasian Journal of Emergency Medicine
• Subjects: frequent users; occasional users; emergency department
• Online Access: http://akademikaciltip.com/archives/archive-detail/article-preview/retrospective-analyses-of-frequent-emergency-depar/38704
• ISSN: 2149-5807; 2149-6048

Aim:Emergency department (ED) demand and overcrowding is increasing worldwide, and a significant portion of this overcrowding is caused by ‘‘frequent users’’. The aim of the study is to define the characteristics of this group of patients who contribute towards a disproportionate number of ED visits.Materials and Methods:All ED visits during a 1-year period between 01 January 2018 and 31 December 2018 were retrospectively investigated using the electronic registration system of the hospital. Patients who visited the ED ≥4 times in this period were considered as ‘‘frequent users’’. Social history, disease and care-related factors of frequent users were investigated.Results:A total of 335,457 ED visits made in a calendar year (2018) were investigated. Frequents users comprised 6.8% of all ED patient population and 22.9% of all ED visits. Female gender proportion was greater among frequent users, and frequent users were younger than occasional users. Yellow/red triage code ratio was higher and the median length of hospital stay was significantly longer in the frequent users group. The proportion of uninsured patients was two times higher in the frequent users group, and half of these patients were immigrants or refugees.Conclusion:Frequent users place a significant burden on the increasing patient volume in EDs. Welfare status was an important indicator for being a frequent user. However, frequent users are a very heterogeneous patient group and more research is needed to better understand the factors leading to frequent ED use and to develop effective strategies to meet patients’ complex health care needs.