Citation

Samet JH, Burstin HR, Green J, Singer DE. Ann. Emerg. Med. 1993; 22(5): 813-818.

Affiliation

Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, MA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1993, American College of Emergency Physicians, Publisher Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

8470838

Abstract

STUDY OBJECTIVES: To evaluate an emergency department's "treat and transfer" policy during a two-month period of reduced inpatient capacity by determining the number and characteristics of transferred patients not admitted as planned to the receiving hospital. DESIGN: Matched case-control analysis. SETTING: Public hospital adult ED. TYPE OF PARTICIPANTS: Patients transferred to other hospitals for admission. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Twelve percent of patients (16 of 135) were not admitted after transfer during the first month, and 8% during the two-month period. Only IV drug use was found to be significantly associated with an increased risk of discharge without admission (odds ratio = 9.5; 95% confidence interval, 1.9 to 47.8). CONCLUSION: Patients transferred from the public hospital ED resulted in admission to the receiving hospital in 92% of transfers. A history of IV drug use was the only characteristic found to be associated with discharge without admission to the accepting hospital.

Language: en