Effect of emergency department fast track on emergency department length of stay: a case-control study
OBJECTIVE: To examine the effect of fast track on emergency department (ED) length of stay (LOS).
DESIGN AND SETTING: Pair-matched case-control design in a public teaching hospital in metropolitan Melbourne, Australia.
PARTICIPANTS: Patients treated by the ED fast track (cases) between 1 January and 31 March 2007 were compared with patients treated by the usual ED processes (controls) from 1 July to 15 November 2006 (n = 822 matched pairs).
INTERVENTION: ED fast track was established in November 2006 and focused on the management of patients with non-urgent complaints.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome measure was ED LOS for fast-track patients. Secondary outcomes were waiting times and ED LOS for other ED patients.
RESULTS: Median ED LOS for non-admitted patients was 132 minutes (interquartile range (IQR) 83-205.25) for controls and 116 minutes (IQR 75.5-159.0) for cases (p<0.01). Fast-track patients had a significantly higher incidence of discharge within 2 h (53% vs 44%, p<0.01) and 4 h (92% vs 84%, p<0.01).
CONCLUSIONS: ED fast track decreased ED LOS for non-admitted patients without compromising waiting times and ED LOS for other ED patients.
Full Text Links
Find Full Text Links for this Article
You are not logged in. Sign Up or Log In to join the discussion.