Characteristics of emergency department (ED) patients included in the ED aftercare study
| Characteristic | |
|---|---|
| CTAS, Canadian Triage and Acuity Score. | |
| *The ED care area refers to the location within the ED from where the patient was discharged. Patients in the cubicles, observation and resuscitation areas are cared for in no bed, a bed and a monitored bed, respectively. | |
| †Bone and joint disorders: refers to traumatic and non-traumatic conditions. | |
| n | 399 |
| Median age, years (IQR) | 49 (36–68) |
| Gender (male) | 201 (50%) |
| CTAS | |
| Non-urgent | 10 (3%) |
| Less urgent | 51 (13%) |
| Urgent | 249 (63%) |
| Emergent | 81 (20%) |
| Resuscitation | 7 (2%) |
| ED care area* | |
| Cubicles | 108 (27%) |
| Observation | 147 (37%) |
| Resuscitation | 144 (36%) |
| Median ED length of stay (hours:minutes) (IQR) | 4:10 (2:51–6:10) |
| Acute diagnosis (top five) | |
| Chest pain | 74 (19%) |
| Bone and joint disorders† | 55 (14%) |
| Genitorurinary (infection/stones/other) | 28 (7%) |
| Atrial fibrillation | 18 (4%) |
| Abdominal pain (cause unspecified) | 17 (4%) |
| Number of chronic illnesses | |
| 0 | 151 (38%) |
| 1 | 129 (32%) |
| 2 | 73 (8%) |
| 3 | 33 (2%) |
| ⩾4 | 13 (3%) |
| Chronic diagnoses (top five) | |
| Hypertension | 70 (16%) |
| Coronary artery disease | 65 (14%) |
| COPD/asthma | 52 (12%) |
| Diabetes mellitus | 38 (8%) |
| Atrial fibrillation | 22 (5%) |