Socioeconomic disadvantage as a driver of non-urgent emergency department presentations: A retrospective data analysis.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Globally, emergency departments (EDs) are struggling to meet the service demands of their local communities. Across Australia, EDs routinely collect data for every presentation which is used to determine the ability of EDs to meet key performance indicators. This data can also be used to provide an overall picture of service demand and has been used by healthcare planners to identify local needs and inform service provision, thus, using ED presentations as a microcosm of the communities they serve. The aim of this study was to use ED presentation data to identify who, when and why people accessed a regional Australian ED with non-urgent conditions.

Method and materials

A retrospective data analysis of routinely collected ED data was undertaken. This included data

SUBMITTER: Unwin M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7153867 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature