• Daniel Brouillard, Geoffrey Melville, Mary K Lam, Jessie Woods, James Martoo, Gabrielle Wilkie, Hughes Makoni, Ataur Rahman, Emezie Odigboh, Thomas Carrigan, Simon Binks, Naomi Fielding, and Kate Curtis.
• Emergency Department, Wollongong Hospital, Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District, Warrawong, New South Wales, Australia.
• Emerg Med Australas. 2024 Oct 25.

ObjectiveTo evaluate the use and impact of pathology tests in patients who present to the ED with mental health-related complaints. The primary objective is to measure the proportion of patients undergoing pathology tests and assess whether these tests trigger a change in management.MethodsIn this retrospective study, we reviewed all recorded mental health presentations to our regional ED between January and June 2021. Patient characteristics, pathology tests, subsequent change in management, treatment costs and time to Emergency Physician and Psychiatrist were extracted. Descriptive statistics and multivariate analysis were used to explore associations between variables of interest, ED length of stay (LOS) and change in management.ResultsOf 37 900 ED visits, 1462 (3.9%) were mental health-related presentations. Pathology tests were conducted in 47.7% of cases, with 3% leading to a change in management. Pathology tests were associated with increased treatment costs (45% increase for blood tests, 17% for urine), and increased ED LOS (48%). Patients with coexisting medical conditions were three times more likely to have a change in management.ConclusionPathology tests should be reserved for patients with high-risk features and based on clinical assessment. Strategic use of pathology tests could avoid unnecessary delays and costs, enhancing patient care in mental health-related ED presentations.© 2024 The Author(s). Emergency Medicine Australasia published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Australasian College for Emergency Medicine.

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