Annals of emergency medicine
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To assess the ability of patients to accurately estimate specific waiting times in the emergency department. ⋯ Patients are not very accurate in their estimation of actual waiting times. Although fewer than one fourth of the respondents overestimated the TWT spent in the ED, almost half the respondents overestimated the PWT.
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To determine the effectiveness of life support courses for health care providers on the basis of one of three outcomes: (1) patient mortality and morbidity, (2) retention of knowledge or skills, and (3) change in practice behavior. ⋯ Among providers, retention of knowledge and skills acquired by participation in support courses is poor. However, refresher activities increase knowledge retention. Modular courses are as good as lectures for learning course material. There is evidence that use of the Advanced Trauma Life Support course has decreased mortality and morbidity. Further studies of patient outcome and provider behaviors are warranted.
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To determine whether race/ethnicity is an important determinant of emergency department use. ⋯ Race/ethnicity was not an important determinant of ED use after adjustment for age, health insurance coverage, regular source of care, and barriers to health care. Population-based studies of ED use should be conducted to further evaluate whether racial/ethnic differences in ED use exist that are not explained by differences in demographics, health, socioeconomic status, access to care, or other determinants of ED use.
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Two widely used formulas for calculating the number of practicing emergency physicians (EPs) are based on the total number of US emergency departments and patient visits. In this study we hypothesized that the number of physicians now working in EDs is significantly greater than the estimates yielded by these formulas. Therefore we attempted to determine the accuracy of these methods for predicting the true number of practicing EPs. We also examined the training, board certification, and distribution of EPs. ⋯ Current staffing estimates regarding EPs working in Missouri greatly underestimate actual staffing needs. Board-certified EPs are in severe shortage and are unequally distributed in Missouri. Extrapolated nationally, these estimates may negatively affect funding and available residency positions for emergency medicine.