Annals of emergency medicine
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We identify differences in the process of care for admitted patients who board in the emergency department (ED) compared with admitted patients who are transferred to an inpatient care area. ⋯ This study detected an important process difference between boarded patients compared with control patients, which could explain previously suggested outcome differences between these 2 groups. This provides additional support for efforts to move patients to inpatient care areas in a timely fashion rather than board in the ED.
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Prescription drug monitoring programs are generally underused in emergency departments (ED) and nationwide enrollment is low among emergency physicians. We aimed to develop consensus recommendations for prescription drug monitoring program policy and design to optimize their functionality and use in the ED. We assembled a technical expert panel with key stakeholders in emergency medicine, public health, and public policy. ⋯ The process yielded policy recommendations and design features, with majority agreement. The panel made 18 policy recommendations within these main themes: enrollment should be mandatory, with an automatic process to mitigate the workload; registration should be open to all prescribers; delegates should have access to prescription drug monitoring program to alleviate work flow burdens; prescription drug monitoring program data should be pushed into hospital electronic health records; prescription drug monitoring program review should be mandatory for patients receiving opioid prescriptions and based on objective criteria; the prescription drug monitoring program content should be standardized and updated in a timely manner; and states should encourage interstate data sharing. An expert panel identified 18 recommendations that can be used by states and policymakers to improve prescription drug monitoring program design to increase use in the ED setting.