Title: The evolving role of emergency departments in the United States
Description: The research described in this report was performed to develop a more complete picture of how hospital emergency departments (EDs) contribute to the U.S. health care system, which is currently evolving in response to economic, clinical, and political pressures. Using a mix of quantitative and qualitative methods, it explores the evolving role that EDs and the personnel who staff them play in evaluating and managing complex and high-acuity patients, serving as the key decisionmaker for roughly half of all inpatient hospital admissions, and serving as ⁰́₋the safety net of the safety net⁰́₊ for patients who cannot get care elsewhere. The report also examines the role that EDs may soon play in either contributing to or helping to control the rising costs of health care.
Subjects: Hospital Emergency Service, Trends, Economics, Medical emergencies, Hospitals, Emergency services, Emergency medicine
Places: United States