Prediction of critical illness during out-of-hospital emergency care.

ABSTRACT:

Context

Early identification of nontrauma patients in need of critical care services in the emergency setting may improve triage decisions and facilitate regionalization of critical care.

Objectives

To determine the out-of-hospital clinical predictors of critical illness and to characterize the performance of a simple score for out-of-hospital prediction of development of critical illness during hospitalization.

Design and setting

Population-based cohort study of an emergency medical services (EMS) system in greater King County, Washington (excluding metropolitan Seattle), that transports to 16 receiving facilities.

Patients

Nontrauma, non-cardiac arrest adult patients transported to a hospital by King County EMS from 2002 through 2006. Eligible records with co

SUBMITTER: Seymour CW 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3949007 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature