Published in:
01-11-2020 | Triage | Original Article
Too old for a paediatric emergency department? It’s complex
Authors:
Michael Bennett, Claudio Dalla Vecchia, Carol Blackburn, Sean Walsh, Michael J. Barrett
Published in:
Irish Journal of Medical Science (1971 -)
|
Issue 4/2020
Login to get access
Abstract
Background
In Ireland, the paediatric emergency department (PED) is tasked with acute healthcare provision to children and adolescents under 16 years of age. The population > 15 years attending the PED remains undescribed.
Aims
The objective of the study is to describe the presentations of patients > 15 years to the PED of a national tertiary academic paediatric hospital.
Methods
A retrospective review of electronic records identifying all patients (> 15 years) who presented from January 2014 to December 2015. Patient demographics, presenting complaint, diagnosis, treatment and disposition were recorded.
Results
A total of 71,082 patients attended during the study period; of whom, 426 (0.6%) patients were aged 16 to 61 years. Over half were identified as having clearly defined chronic complex conditions. Three hundred and forty-five (89%) patients were known to the hospital paediatric services and under the care of specialist with 131 (34%) patients admitted locally, all of whom had chronic complex conditions (CCC). There was a total of 44 (11%) patients who presented to the PED with de novo issues and had a variety of acute presenting complaints with minor injuries, syncope and chest pain being most common.
Conclusion
This is the first Irish study demonstrating a significant population (> 15 years) with medical complexity that requires a suite of services in a paediatric hospital which is accessed in an unscheduled manner through an emergency department. We recommend further research to describe paediatric CCC attending Irish emergency and hospital services.