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Perceptions of Emergency Department Crowding in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

Introduction: The state of emergency department (ED) crowding in Pennsylvania has not previously been reported. Methods: We assessed perceptions of ED crowding by surveying medical directors/chairs from Pennsylvania EDs in the spring of 2008. Results: A total of 106 completed the questionnaire (68%...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Pines, Jesse M., Isserman, Joshua A., Kelly, John J.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Department of Emergency Medicine, University of California, Irvine 2013
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3583278/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23451289
http://dx.doi.org/10.5811/westjem.2011.5.6700
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author Pines, Jesse M.
Isserman, Joshua A.
Kelly, John J.
author_facet Pines, Jesse M.
Isserman, Joshua A.
Kelly, John J.
author_sort Pines, Jesse M.
collection PubMed
description Introduction: The state of emergency department (ED) crowding in Pennsylvania has not previously been reported. Methods: We assessed perceptions of ED crowding by surveying medical directors/chairs from Pennsylvania EDs in the spring of 2008. Results: A total of 106 completed the questionnaire (68% response rate). A total of 83% (86/104) agreed that ED crowding was a problem; 26% (27/105) reported that at least half of admitted patients boarded for more than 4 hours. Ninety-eight percent (102/104) agreed that patient satisfaction suffers during crowding and 79% (84/106) stated that quality suffers. Sixty-five percent (68/105) reported that crowding had worsened during the past 2 years. Several hospital interventions were used to alleviate crowding: expediting discharges, 81% (86/106); prioritizing ED patients for inpatient beds, 79% (84/106); and ambulance diversion, 55% (57/105). Almost all respondents who had improved ED operations reported that it had reduced crowding. Conclusion: ED crowding is a common problem in Pennsylvania and is worsening in the majority of hospitals, despite the implementation of a variety of interventions.
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spelling pubmed-35832782013-02-28 Perceptions of Emergency Department Crowding in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Pines, Jesse M. Isserman, Joshua A. Kelly, John J. West J Emerg Med Emergency Department Access Introduction: The state of emergency department (ED) crowding in Pennsylvania has not previously been reported. Methods: We assessed perceptions of ED crowding by surveying medical directors/chairs from Pennsylvania EDs in the spring of 2008. Results: A total of 106 completed the questionnaire (68% response rate). A total of 83% (86/104) agreed that ED crowding was a problem; 26% (27/105) reported that at least half of admitted patients boarded for more than 4 hours. Ninety-eight percent (102/104) agreed that patient satisfaction suffers during crowding and 79% (84/106) stated that quality suffers. Sixty-five percent (68/105) reported that crowding had worsened during the past 2 years. Several hospital interventions were used to alleviate crowding: expediting discharges, 81% (86/106); prioritizing ED patients for inpatient beds, 79% (84/106); and ambulance diversion, 55% (57/105). Almost all respondents who had improved ED operations reported that it had reduced crowding. Conclusion: ED crowding is a common problem in Pennsylvania and is worsening in the majority of hospitals, despite the implementation of a variety of interventions. Department of Emergency Medicine, University of California, Irvine 2013-02 /pmc/articles/PMC3583278/ /pubmed/23451289 http://dx.doi.org/10.5811/westjem.2011.5.6700 Text en © 2013 Department of Emergency Medicine, University of California, Irvine http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0 This is an open access article distributed in accordance with the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) License. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/.
spellingShingle Emergency Department Access
Pines, Jesse M.
Isserman, Joshua A.
Kelly, John J.
Perceptions of Emergency Department Crowding in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
title Perceptions of Emergency Department Crowding in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
title_full Perceptions of Emergency Department Crowding in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
title_fullStr Perceptions of Emergency Department Crowding in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
title_full_unstemmed Perceptions of Emergency Department Crowding in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
title_short Perceptions of Emergency Department Crowding in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
title_sort perceptions of emergency department crowding in the commonwealth of pennsylvania
topic Emergency Department Access
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3583278/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23451289
http://dx.doi.org/10.5811/westjem.2011.5.6700
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