bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
P061: Barriers to distributing discharge materials in the emergency department
Authors: Maneshi A. , Gangatharan H. , Cormier M. , Gosselin S. 
Published: May 2020

Introduction: An efficient discharging process provides an opportunity for the patient to receive information about their diagnosis, prognosis, treatments, follow-up plan and reasons to return. Even when given complete discharge instructions, studies demonstrate that patients have poor retention of the information due to misunderstandings, language barriers, or poor health literacy. This study sought to identify barriers encountered by healthcare workers in providing discharge handouts to emergency department patients. Methods: A bilingual online survey of fifteen questions was shared with Quebec ED staff physicians and residents at the annual conference, and by email correspondence through the Quebec Emergency Medicine Association (AMUQ - L'Association des médecins d'urgence du Québec). Results: There was a total of 126 responses (96 physicians and 30 residents), with a response rate of 22.7% (126/556) and a completion rate of 84.1%. 85.8% (n = 120) responded that they were aware of discharge instructions available in their ED. Most common discharge handouts were concussion/traumatic brain injury and laceration repair. 58.3% of respondents (n = 120) reported having handed out discharge instructions in the last week, 22.5% in the last month, 10.8% within the last 6 months and 5.8% had not given out discharge instructions in the last 6 months. Respondents indicated that the most common barriers to giving out discharge instructions were their difficulty to access and and the time required. 58% of respondents (n = 65) reported handing out discharge handouts less than 50% of the time for conditions that had a discharge handout available at their hospital. Participants reported they would be more likely to give out discharge instructions if they were easier to print and if there was an automatic prompt from the EMR associated with the diagnosis. When asked to rank based on importance (1 = not important to 10 = very important), the majority of respondents thought discharge instructions were very important for patient comprehension, return to ED instructions and managing expectations of the illness (Median 8, Likert scale 1-10, DI 0.29, n = 119). Conclusion: Despite physicians and residents working in the ED believing discharge instructions are important for patient care, handouts are seldom given to patients. The lack of easy availability such as documents automatically available with the prompt of an electronic medical record would likely increase their distribution.
P062: Characterizing pediatric emergency department discharge communication using PEDICSv2
Authors: MacCuspic K. , Breneol S. , Curran J. 
Published: May 2020

Introduction: Discharge communication in the pediatric emergency department (ED) is an important aspect of successful transition home for patients and families. The content, process, and pattern of discharge communication in a pediatric ED encounter has yet to be comprehensively explored. The objective of this study was to identify and characterize elements and patterns of discharge communication occurring during pediatric ED visits between health care providers (HCPs) and families. Methods: We analyzed real time video observations (N = 53) of children (0-18) presenting to two Canadian pediatric EDs with fever or minor head injury. We used a revised version of an existing coding scheme, PEDICSv2, to code all encounters. PEDICSv2 includes 32 elements capturing discharge communication. Inter-rater reliability was established with a second coder. Descriptive statistics reflecting the rates of delivery of each communication content element was reported to assess repetition at four stages of the visit (introduction/planning, actions/interventions, diagnosis/home management plan and summary/conclusion). Communication content was analyzed to depict behaviors of individual HCPs and the total communication delivered to the patient and caregiver by the healthcare team. Results: Results show 55.6% of families were asked to repeat their main concern by multiple HCPs during their ED visit. However, only 14.8% of families had comprehension of delivered discharge information assessed by more than one HCP. When involved in care, physicians were the most likely HCP to perform a comprehension assessment. Most of the communication delivered by nursing staff were elements involved in the introduction/planning and action/intervention stages of the visit. Conclusion: Findings indicate that most repetition occurs while eliciting a main concern during the introduction and planning stage of a pediatric ED encounter. In contrast, communication elements focusing on understanding the home management plan are less likely to be repeated by multiple HCPs. Future work focusing on structuring team workflow to minimize repetition during the introduction and planning stage may allow for clearer discharge teaching and more frequent comprehension assessment.
P064: Hot days make for long stays: the impact of extreme heat events on emergency department lengths of stay and volumes in two Canadian community hospitals
Authors: Kegel F. , Luo O. , Richer S. 
Published: May 2020

Introduction: The average temperature in Canada has risen 1.7°C between 1948-2016, increasing the frequency, severity and duration of extreme heat events. These events can exacerbate underlying health conditions, bringing patients to emergency departments (EDs). There is limited data associating sustained heat events to Canadian ED volumes and performance. This retrospective analysis assessed the impact of humidex and temperature on ED volume and length of stay (LOS). Methods: LOS is an indicator of ED overcrowding and system performance. The authors compared median and maximum LOS (hours) and patient volumes in both ambulatory and stretcher ED sections of two community hospitals (NDH, VH) in Montreal, QC to humidex and temperature during the summers of 2016-2018. Data were analyzed with one-way ANOVA and post hoc means analysis with Fisher LSD tests of a priori determined thresholds of mean three-day maximum humidex and temperature preceding ED presentation. Results: The mean maximum humidex and temperature values for the 2016-2018 summers in Montreal, QC were 30.4 and 26.1°C, respectively (n = 276 days). Elevated mean three-day maximum humidex was associated with increased ED volumes (F[3,88] = 4.2,p = 0.008) and median LOS (F[3,88] = 7.7,p = 0.0001) in the NDH. Mean three-day maximum humidex was associated with ED volumes (F[3,272) = 2.9,p = 0.03) but not with median and maximum LOS (p > 0.05) in the VH. Parallel comparisons with mean three-day maximum temperature similarly showed an association with increased ED volumes (F[3,88] = 5.0,p = 0.003) and increased duration of median LOS (F[3,88] = 3.5,p = 0.02) in the NDH. Mean three-day maximum temperature was associated with increased ED volumes (F[3,272] = 3.3,p = 0.02) but not with median and maximum LOS (p > 0.05) in the VH. Conclusion: Warming climates are associated with an increased number of ED presentations and longer median ED LOS. As heat events disproportionately impacted NDH, future investigations need to determine why these two hospitals were affected differently. This study provides local evidence that climate change can disrupt emergency services by increasing the demand for and delaying timely care. This is the first study that the authors are aware of that demonstrates these findings. Hospitals need to be climate ready. Heat waves often happen during times when summer bed closures and vacations already impact system capacity. EDs should dynamically adapt to meet community needs during periods of extreme heat.
P072: Preventing emergency department visits among patients with cancer: a scoping review
Authors: Kirkland S. , Clua M. Garrido , Junqueira D. , Campbell S. , Rowe B. 
Published: May 2020

Introduction: Patients frequently present to the Emergency Department (ED) with predictable complications associated with radiation and chemotherapy for active cancer. Care alternatives have been proposed to reduce ED visits; however, no systematic review related to ED presentations has been completed. The objective of this scoping review was to examine the effectiveness of interventions designed to reduce ED visits among patients receiving active cancer treatment. Methods: A comprehensive literature search involving nine electronic databases and the grey literature was completed. Inclusion criteria considered studies assessing the impact of any intervention to reduce ED utilization among patients with active cancer. Two reviewers independently assessed relevance and inclusion; disagreements were resolved through third party adjudication. Dichotomous and continuous outcomes were summarized as risk ratio (RR) or mean difference (MD) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) using a random-effects model, wherever appropriate. Results: From 3303 citations, a total of 25 studies were included. Interventions identified in these studies comprised: routine and symptom-based patient follow-up, oncology outpatient clinics, early symptom detection, comprehensive inpatient management, hospital at home, and patient navigators. Six out of eight studies assessing oncology outpatient clinics reported a decrease in the proportion of patients presenting to the ED. A meta-analysis of three of these studies did not demonstrate reduction in ED utilization (RR 0.78; 95% CI: 0.56 to 1.08; I2 = 77%) when comparing oncology outpatient clinics to standard care; however, sensitivity analysis removing one study reporting rare events supported a decrease in ED visits (RR 0.86; 95% CI: 0.74 to 0.99; I2 = 47%). Three studies assessing patient follow-up interventions showed no difference in ED utilization (RR 0.69; 95% CI: 0.38 to 1.25; I2 = 86%). Conclusion: A variety of interventions designed to mitigate ED presentations by patients receiving active cancer treatment have been developed and evaluated. Limited evidence suggests that an oncology outpatient clinic may be an effective strategy to reduce ED utilization; however, additional high-quality studies are needed.
P089: Reducing preventable patient transfers from long-term care facilities to emergency departments: a scoping review
Authors: Grant K. , Lee D. , Cheng I. , Baker G. 
Published: May 2020

Introduction: Emergency Department (ED) crowding is an international health system issue that is worsening. Further, ED crowding and “hallway medicine” has been identified as one of the most significant healthcare challenges currently facing Canadians. One contributor is preventable transfers from long-term care facilities (LTCFs) to Emergency Departments (EDs). In Canada, there were 63,752 LTCF patient transfers to the ED in 2014, with 24% (15,202) of them due to potentially preventable conditions. Each preventable transfer exposes patients to transport and hospital-related complications, and costs the healthcare system thousands of dollars. There have been many proposed and studied interventions aimed at alleviating the issue, but few attempts to assess and evaluate different interventions across institutions in a systematic manner. Methods: A scoping review of the literature using three electronic databases was conducted. A scoping review methodology was used due to the range of interventions and the heterogeneity in study design and outcome. Inclusion criteria included: studies on interventions designed to reduce transfers from LTCFs, studies that reported key outcomes such as number of ED transfers, and studies with a control or comparison group. Articles were screened by two independent reviewers (Cohen's k = 0.68), and study quality was assessed using the National Heart, Lung, Blood Institute quality assessment tools. Results: Findings were organized into five intervention types (telemedicine, outreach teams, interdisciplinary teams, integrated approaches, and other), and both a tabular and narrative synthesis was completed. Eleven studies had a good quality assessment rating, 13 studies had a fair rating, and two studies had a poor rating. Twenty out of the 26 studies reported statistically significant reductions in ED transfer rate, ranging from 10-70%. Interdisciplinary healthcare teams staffed within LTCFs were the most effective interventions. Conclusion: There are several promising interventions that have successfully reduced the number of preventable transfers from LTCFs to EDs, in a variety of health system settings. Further analysis of the relative resource requirements of each intervention, and practices that can enable successful implementation are needed to inform healthcare policy and administrative decision making. Widespread implementation of these interventions has the potential to considerably reduce ED crowding.
P109: Does an elevated troponin ultimately matter? An assessment of outcomes in patients presenting to the emergency department with non-cardiac complaints
Authors: Endres K. , Chow B. , Garuba H. 
Published: May 2020

Introduction: Acute myocardial infarction (MI) is one of the most time-sensitive diagnoses made in the emergency department (ED). Troponin (TNI) measurement is an invaluable tool; however, its utility depends on the clinical context and is highest where there is a strong pre-test probability. Studies show that most TNI elevations are due to non-cardiovascular causes; however, elevated TNI has been associated with increased morbidity and mortality, often prompting additional investigations. The aim of our study was to compare 1-year cardiac outcomes of patients who presented to the ED with non-cardiac complaints and elevated TNI who had further cardiac testing versus those who did not. Methods: We conducted a retrospective chart review of patients ≥18 seen in the ED for non-cardiac complaints with a high TNI from January-June 2016. Patients were stratified into two groups: 1) those who received diagnostic testing for ischemia and/or a cardiac consultation and 2) those without cardiac consultation or testing. Data was also collected on major adverse cardiac events within 1-year of ED presentation. Chi-squared analysis assessed the difference in proportions of outcomes between groups. We present our preliminary data. Results: In total, 1500 patients met inclusion criteria and 861 have been analyzed thus far. Of these 861, 209 went on to have either diagnostic testing for ischemia and/or a cardiology consult while 652 had no further investigations. There was no statistically significant difference in the proportion of patients who developed unstable angina (p = 0.9824), ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) (p = 0.9956), non-STEMI (p = 0.9008), stroke/TIA (p = 0.9657), revascularization (p = 0.8873), cardiac hospitalization (p = 0.9446) or died (p = 0.8972), within 1-year of their ED presentation. Conclusion: In patients with isolated elevated TNI and non-cardiac complaints, preliminary data showed no difference in mortality or cardiac event rates between those who had further testing/consultations and those who did not. TNI ordering could be cautiously limited to only presenting complaints/preliminary diagnoses likely to have cardiac etiology or sequelae or those in whom further testing would impact management/outcomes. Quality of care may be improved by reducing length of stay in the ED and potential risks of unnecessary tests. Future studies include determining cost implications and classifying what level of TNI elevation in non-ACS patients may predict a future cardiac outcome.
P117: A multicenter analysis of an emergency physician lead on department flow and the provider experience
Authors: Crowder K. , Domm E. , Lipp R. , Robinson O. , Vatanpour S. , Wang D. , Lang E. 
Published: May 2020

Introduction: Emergency department (ED) flow is a strong predictor of patient safety, quality of care and provider satisfaction. Throughput interventions have been shown to improve flow metrics, yet few studies have considered MD leadership roles and evaluated provider experience. Our objective was to evaluate the emergency physician lead (EPL) role, a novel MD staffing initiative. Methods: This mixed-method observational time series analysis evaluated ED metrics at two tertiary EDs including ED length of stay (LOS), EMS Park LOS and physician initial assessment (PIA) time as well as 72-hour readmit and left without being seen (LWBS) rates. Data was collected from the ED information system database for control (Dec 6, 2017-Feb 28, 2018 SITE1 and Mar 1–May 31, 2018 SITE2), pre (Sept 3-Nov 30, 2018 SITE 1 and Dec 3, 2018-Feb 28, 2019 SITE2) and post (Dec 3, 2018 –Feb 28, 2019 SITE1, Mar 1- May 31, 2019 SITE2) periods for adult patients presenting to each site. Site data was analyzed independently using descriptive and inferential statistics to calculate differences in means, and means were compared using t-tests. A survey elicited provider feedback from ED physicians, nurses, and EMS professionals on the effect of the EPL on throughput, timeliness of admissions and discharges, provider workload, and the EPL as a resource to other professionals. Results: The number of ED visits at SITE1 were 13136 (Ctrl), 13236 (Pre) and 13137 (Post), and at SITE2 were 14371(Ctrl), 13866 (Pre) and 14962 (Post). Mean ED LOS was decreased by 17 min in post vs control and 20 min vs pre at SITE1 (p < 0.01). SITE2 saw an increase in ED LOS by 7 min vs control and 8 min vs pre (p < 0.01). EMS LOS at SITE1 was decreased by 21 min vs control and 22 min vs pre (p < 0.01), but was increased at SITE2 by 2 min vs control (p = 0.09) and 14 min vs pre (p < 0.01). PIA time at SITE1 was decreased by 15 min vs control (p < 0.01) and 13 min vs pre and increased by 5 min vs control and 12 min vs pre at SITE2 (p < 0.01). 72 hour readmit and LWBS rates were unchanged at both sites. Qualitative feedback from ED providers highlighted the early provision of treatments and investigations by the EPL, and many felt the EPL was an important resource. Conclusion: The inclusion of both quantitative and qualitative data in this study provided a robust analysis of the impact of the EPL role and demonstrated modest but important improvements. A site-dependent, carefully considered implementation of the EPL role may improve ED metrics and provider experiences.
P122: The evaluation of various point of care ultrasound features in Stanford type A aortic dissections
Authors: Chiang T. , Puri G. 
Published: May 2020

Introduction: Type A aortic dissection(AD) is one of the most lethal diseases in medicine. Its mortality rate increases 1-2% per hour from the onset of symptoms to treatment. Timely diagnoses of ADs, therefore, are crucial to improve survival and decrease morbidity. There are various proposed clinical guidelines to help emergency physicians decide when a CTA is urgently needed with most widely quoted being the validated Aortic Dissection Detection Risk Score(ADD-RS) recommended by the American Heart Association. The addition of D-Dimer for further risk stratification has also been entertained. A recent article published in the American Journal of Emergency recommends using point of care ultrasound(POCUS) to expedite diagnosis. With the rising use of POCUS in the emergency department, it can be the missing link to timely AD diagnoses. This project aims to elucidate the prevalence of positive POCUS findings (pericardial effusion and dilated aortic root) in type A AD via a retrospective chart review. Methods: This study is a retrospective chart review of 200 patients with the diagnosis of AD treated at Southlake Regional Hospital. We included patients diagnosed with type A AD and excluded those diagnosed with type B AD. We collected data on their demographics, ADD-RS scores, investigation results, treatments, and clinical outcomes. The main focus of the chart review was on the presence of pericardial effusion or dilated aortic root on echocardiograms. Binomial statistical analysis was used to analyze the collected data. Results: We identified 126 patients with type A AD out of 200 charts reviewed. Thirteen (14% CI 8-23%, n = 93 p = 0.05) had wide mediastinum on their chest X-rays; twenty (95% CI 75-100%, n = 21 P = 0.05) had elevated D-dimer levels; and ninety-one (72% CI 64-80%, n = 126 p = 0.05) had positive ADD-RS. Only 88 out of 126 AD cases had documented echocardiograms. Sixty-eight (77% CI 67-86%, n = 88 p = 0.05) had either pericardial effusions or dilated aortic roots on their echocardiograms. Eighty-one (92% CI 84-95%, n = 88 p = 0.05) had either positive ADD-RS or positive echocardiogram findings, which is 20 (23% CI 14-33%, n = 88 P = 0.05) more cases than ADD-RS would have picked up alone. Conclusion: The absence of both pericardial effusion and dilated aortic root on echocardiogram in combination with a negative ADD-RS has a high sensitivity for ruling out type A AD. Our data support further research into the use of POCUS to expedite the diagnosis of type A AD in the emergency department.
P126: Utilization and outcomes of children presenting to an emergency department by ambulance
Authors: Cantor Z. , Aglipay M. , Plint A. 
Published: May 2020

Introduction: Children account for a low proportion of paramedic transports. Evidence suggests that many pediatric transports are of low acuity, but there are few studies comparing these patients to those that self-present to the ED. Our primary objective was to determine if illness severity was associated with presentation by ambulance among pediatric patients. Methods: We undertook a single centre, retrospective cohort study at a tertiary care pediatric centre. All patients presenting to the ED in 2015 by any route other than air ambulance were eligible. Patients were divided into two groups based on the route of presentation – ambulance or self-presentation. The primary outcome was disposition decision; the secondary outcome was CTAS level. To determine whether patient discharge disposition or CTAS was associated with the method of arrival, we conducted generalized estimating equations (GEE) to account for correlation within patients with multiple ED visits. Results: Of the 69,092 visits, 69,034 were eligible and analyzed. Of those, 4478 (6.5%) arrived by ambulance, while 64,556 (93.5) self-presented. Those arriving by ambulance had a median age of 10 years [IQR: 2-5 years] vs. 4 years [IQR: 1.75-10 years] in the self-presenting group and were 52.6% male (vs. 52.8%). Two percent of the ambulance cohort were admitted to the ICU (vs. 0.2%), and 16.6% were admitted to the ward (vs. 5%). Patients presenting by ambulance had higher CTAS scores – 5.3% CTAS 1 (vs. 0.3%), 16.4% CTAS 2 (vs. 7.0%), 61.2% CTAS 3 (vs. 45.8%), and 17.1% CTAS 4-5 (vs. 46.9%). The odds of arriving by ambulance were 10.2 x higher for patients admitted to the ICU (OR = 10.2, 95%CI: 7.9 to 13.3) vs. those discharged home. The odds of arriving by ambulance were 64.2 x (OR = 64.2, 95% CI: 48.6 to 84.7) higher for patients CTAS 1 patients vs. CTAS 5 patients. The top 3 complaints among ambulance patients were neurological (22.5%), respiratory (22.7%), and orthopaedic (11.3%). Among self-presenting patients, the top three were general/minor (20.4%), respiratory (16.4%), and gastrointestinal (14.3%). Conclusion: Children presenting to the ED via ambulance are at higher risk for admission to the ward and critical care unit. It is important that paramedics have sufficient training to ensure adequate skills to manage critically ill children. Given the low proportion but higher severity of illness of pediatric transports, further research and consideration must be given to how best to enable paramedics in the management of children.