European journal of emergency medicine : official journal of the European Society for Emergency Medicine
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People with mental illness have higher use of emergency services than the general population and may experience problems with navigating in complex healthcare systems. Poor physical health contributes to the excess mortality among the mentally ill. ⋯ More than one-third of the study population had a history of mental illness. These patients received a significantly lighter EMS response than patients with no history of mental illness. They were significantly more likely to use the emergency care system again if released at scene. This risk increased with the increasing severity of the mental illness.
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Need for recovery (NFR) describes an individual's need to physically and psychologically recuperate following a period of work. Physicians working in emergency departments (EDs) have higher NFR scores than other occupational groups. Increased NFR may precede occupational burnout and identification provides opportunities for early interventions. ⋯ This study confirms an association between increased NFR score and self-perceived well-being characteristics. Factors previously reported to reduce NFR could therefore be important initiatives to improve well-being of the ED workforce.
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Although factors related to a return emergency department (ED) visit have been reported, few studies have examined 'high-risk' return ED visits with serious adverse outcomes. Understanding factors associated with high-risk return ED visits may help with early recognition and prevention of these catastrophic events. ⋯ We found a relatively small fraction of discharges (0.1%) developed serious adverse events during the return ED visits. We identified symptom-based and vital sign-based warning signs that may be used for patient self-monitoring at home, as well as new-onset signs during the return visit to alert healthcare providers for timely management of these high-risk revisits.