Ambulatory care-sensitive emergency department cases: a mixed methods approach to systemize and analyze cases in Germany.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Internationally, emergency departments (ED) are treating increasing numbers of patients with conditions that could have been managed appropriately in ambulatory care (AC) settings. The aim of our study was to develop the first consensus-based list of AC-sensitive conditions commonly seen in German EDs and explore predictors of these visits.

Methods

Our study used a Delphi survey of 30 physicians to compile a list of conditions they agreed were amenable to AC treatment. The group identified reasons why patients visit EDs instead of AC. We used the results to inform spatial regression models analysing the association of patient characteristics and attributes of AC with AC-sensitive ED visits based on 2015 district-level data.

Results

Our study provides a list

SUBMITTER: Schuettig W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6896970 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature