Profile of clinical emergencies in the emergency department of a teaching hospital

• Autor(a) principal: Ribeiro, Renato Mendonça
• Data de Publicação: 2014
• Outros Autores: Cesarino, Claudia Bernardi, Ribeiro, Rita de Cássia Helú Mendonça, Rodrigues, Camilla Christina, Bertolin, Daniela Comelis, Pinto, Maria Helena, Beccária, Lúcia Marinilza
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: por; eng
• Título da fonte: Reme (Online)
• Texto Completo: https://periodicos.ufmg.br/index.php/reme/article/view/50141
• topic: Urgencias Médicas; Servicios Médicos de Urgência; Tratamiento de Urgencia; Hospitales Universitarios; Emergências; Serviços Médicos de Emergência; Tratamento de Emergência; Hospitais Universitários; Emergencies; Emergency Medical Services; Emergency Treatment; Hospitals, University

This study aimed to: investigate the demographic characteristics of patients seen in the emergency department of a teaching hospital; identify the most common clinical emergencies; and identify the ultimate destination of these patients (medical discharge, hospitalization or death). This retrospective, cross-sectional, quantitative study. Data were collected from patients' electronic medical records. Inclusion criteria were: adult patients 18 years or older, with a diagnosis of clinical emergency, seen in the period from January 2009 through May 2010. There was a predominance of: females (56.33%), of white ethnicity (86.95%), and mean age 48.74 ± 7.8 years. The most prevalent age group was 18-29 years. Most of the patients (99.65%) declared themselves to be active workers. 60.23% were married. The most frequent neurologic diseases found were: headache (29.03%); stroke (26.09%); and upper back pain (10.25%) and cardiological diseases were: precordial pain (38.98%), heart failure (25.79%), hypertension (12.29%) and cardiac arrhythmia (8.67%). The ultimate destinations of patients seen in the emergency department were: medical discharge (55.8%) and hospitalization (43.26%). Among those patients who had been hospitalized, medical discharge was the most common outcome (87.99%), followed by death (11.47%). Further research is necessary in order to better understand the various aspects involved in the operation of an emergency department unit and to develop an institutional profile that encompasses other approaches, such as a better and more efficient health care delivery by health professionals