Emergency medicine Australasia : EMA
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Emerg Med Australas · Apr 2019
Observational StudyPatients admitted via the emergency department to the intensive care unit: An observational cohort study.
Timely and appropriate assessment and management within the ED impacts patient outcomes including in-hospital mortality and length of stay (LOS). Within the ED, several processes facilitate timely recognition of the need for intensive care unit (ICU) admission. This study describes characteristics and outcomes for patient presentations admitted to ICU from ED, categorised by Australasian Triage Score (ATS), ICU admission time and ICU admission source. ⋯ Most patients are appropriately identified in ED as requiring ICU admission, although around one in four were triaged ATS 3/4. Patients admitted to the ward first tended to have poorer outcomes than those directly admitted to ICU. Factors predicting the need for ICU admission should be identified to support clinical decision-making.
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Emerg Med Australas · Apr 2019
Observational StudyHow closely do blood gas electrolytes and haemoglobin agree with serum values in adult emergency department patients: An observational study.
The aims of this study were to establish the bias (mean difference) and 95% limits of agreement (LoA) between electrolyte values (sodium and potassium) and haemoglobin between whole blood analysed by the ED resuscitation room blood gas analyser and specimens analysed using standard techniques in the central hospital laboratory and to determine the proportion of analyses falling outside defined clinically acceptable LoA and pathology expert defined standards. ⋯ Agreement between blood gas analysis and laboratory analysis for sodium, potassium and haemoglobin concentrations shows acceptable agreement for use in time critical clinical decision-making in ED.