What presents to a rural district emergency department: A case mix
Background: There is little information available on the range of conditions presenting to generalist run rural district hospital emergency departments (EDs) which are the first point of acute care for many South Africans. Aim: This study aims to assess the range of acute presentations as well as th...
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doaj-892014cda70946ee9c9fd3528581e7402020-11-25T03:00:06ZengAOSISAfrican Journal of Primary Health Care & Family Medicine2071-29282071-29362020-07-01121e1e610.4102/phcfm.v12i1.2275753What presents to a rural district emergency department: A case mixNadishani T. Meyer0Gareth D. Meyer1Charles B. Gaunt2Jabulani Rural Health Foundation, Mqanduli, South Africa; and, Zithulele Hospital, MqanduliZithulele Hospital, MqanduliZithulele Hospital, MqanduliBackground: There is little information available on the range of conditions presenting to generalist run rural district hospital emergency departments (EDs) which are the first point of acute care for many South Africans. Aim: This study aims to assess the range of acute presentations as well as the types of procedures required by patients in a rural district hospital context. Setting: Zithulele is a 147-bed district hospital in rural Eastern Cape. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study assessing all patients presenting to the Zithulele hospital emergency department from 01 October 2015 to 31 December 2015. Data collected included the triage acuity using the South African Triage Scale system, patient demographics, diagnosis, outcome and procedures performed. Diagnoses were coded retrospectively according to the international statistical classification of diseases and related health problems version 10 (ICD 10). Results: Of the 4 002 patients presenting to the ED during the study period, 2% were triaged as emergencies and 45% as non-urgent. The most common diagnostic categories were injuries, infections and respiratory illnesses respectively. Diagnoses from all broad categories of the ICD-10 were represented. 67% of patients required no procedure. Diagnostic procedures (n = 877) were more prevalent than therapeutic procedures (n = 377). Only 2.4% of patients were transferred to a referral centre acutely. Conclusion: Patients with conditions from all categories of the ICD-10 present for management at rural district hospitals. Healthcare professionals working in this setting need to independently diagnose and manage a wide range of ED presentations and execute an assortment of procedures.https://phcfm.org/index.php/phcfm/article/view/2275case mixrural hospital emergency departmentrural healthrural medicinespecialist emergency medicine |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Nadishani T. Meyer Gareth D. Meyer Charles B. Gaunt |
spellingShingle |
Nadishani T. Meyer Gareth D. Meyer Charles B. Gaunt What presents to a rural district emergency department: A case mix African Journal of Primary Health Care & Family Medicine case mix rural hospital emergency department rural health rural medicine specialist emergency medicine |
author_facet |
Nadishani T. Meyer Gareth D. Meyer Charles B. Gaunt |
author_sort |
Nadishani T. Meyer |
title |
What presents to a rural district emergency department: A case mix |
title_short |
What presents to a rural district emergency department: A case mix |
title_full |
What presents to a rural district emergency department: A case mix |
title_fullStr |
What presents to a rural district emergency department: A case mix |
title_full_unstemmed |
What presents to a rural district emergency department: A case mix |
title_sort |
what presents to a rural district emergency department: a case mix |
publisher |
AOSIS |
series |
African Journal of Primary Health Care & Family Medicine |
issn |
2071-2928 2071-2936 |
publishDate |
2020-07-01 |
description |
Background: There is little information available on the range of conditions presenting to generalist run rural district hospital emergency departments (EDs) which are the first point of acute care for many South Africans.
Aim: This study aims to assess the range of acute presentations as well as the types of procedures required by patients in a rural district hospital context.
Setting: Zithulele is a 147-bed district hospital in rural Eastern Cape.
Methods: This is a cross-sectional study assessing all patients presenting to the Zithulele hospital emergency department from 01 October 2015 to 31 December 2015. Data collected included the triage acuity using the South African Triage Scale system, patient demographics, diagnosis, outcome and procedures performed. Diagnoses were coded retrospectively according to the international statistical classification of diseases and related health problems version 10 (ICD 10).
Results: Of the 4 002 patients presenting to the ED during the study period, 2% were triaged as emergencies and 45% as non-urgent. The most common diagnostic categories were injuries, infections and respiratory illnesses respectively. Diagnoses from all broad categories of the ICD-10 were represented. 67% of patients required no procedure. Diagnostic procedures (n = 877) were more prevalent than therapeutic procedures (n = 377). Only 2.4% of patients were transferred to a referral centre acutely.
Conclusion: Patients with conditions from all categories of the ICD-10 present for management at rural district hospitals. Healthcare professionals working in this setting need to independently diagnose and manage a wide range of ED presentations and execute an assortment of procedures. |
topic |
case mix rural hospital emergency department rural health rural medicine specialist emergency medicine |
url |
https://phcfm.org/index.php/phcfm/article/view/2275 |
work_keys_str_mv |
AT nadishanitmeyer whatpresentstoaruraldistrictemergencydepartmentacasemix AT garethdmeyer whatpresentstoaruraldistrictemergencydepartmentacasemix AT charlesbgaunt whatpresentstoaruraldistrictemergencydepartmentacasemix |
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