Does crowding influence emergency department treatment time and disposition?

ABSTRACT:

Objective

The objective of this study was to determine whether crowding influences treatment times and disposition decisions for emergency department (ED) patients.

Methods

We conducted a retrospective cohort study at 2 hospitals from January 1, 2014, to July 1, 2014. Adult ED visits with dispositions of discharge, admission, or transfer were included. Treatment times were modeled by linear regression with log-transformation; disposition decisions (admission or transfer vs discharge) were modeled by logistic regression. Both models adjusted for chief complaint, Emergency Severity Index (ESI), and 4 crowding metrics in quartiles: waiting count, treatment count, boarding count, and National Emergency Department Overcrowding Scale.

Results

We included 21,382 visits at si

SUBMITTER: Hoot NR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7819268 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature