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Emergency Department Access

Comparison Between Emergency Department and Inpatient Nurses’ Perceptions of Boarding of Admitted Patients

Introduction: The boarding of admitted patients in the emergency department (ED) is a major cause of crowding and access block. One solution is boarding admitted patients in inpatient ward (W) hallways.
Conclusion: Inpatient nurses and those who have never worked in the ED are more opposed to inpatient boarding than ED nurses and nurses who have worked previously in the ED. Primary nursing concerns about boarding are lack of monitoring and privacy in hallway beds. Nurses admitted as patients seemed to prefer not being boarded where they work.

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Emergency Department Access

Established and Novel Initiatives to Reduce Crowding in Emergency Departments

Introduction: We sought to determine the degree that ACEP-identified high-impact initiatives for ED crowding and vertical patient flow have been implemented in academic EDs in the United States (U.S.).
Conclusion: We found great variability in the extent academic EDs have implemented ACEP’s established high-impact ED crowding initiatives, yet most (70%) have adopted to some extent the novel initiative vertical patient flow.

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Emergency Department Crowding is Associated with Reduced Satisfaction Scores in Patients Discharged from the Emergency Department

Introduction: Emergency department (ED) crowding has been shown to negatively impact patient outcomes. Few studies have addressed the effect of ED crowding on patient satisfaction. Our objective was to evaluate the impact of ED crowding on patient satisfaction in patients discharged from the ED.

Conclusion: Increased crowding, as measured by ED occupancy rate and EDWIN score, was significantly associated with reduced patient satisfaction. Although causative attribution was limited, our study suggested yet another negative impact resulting from ED crowding.

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Ed Administration

Time Series Analysis of Emergency Department Length of Stay per 8-Hour Shift

The mean emergency department (ED) length of stay (LOS) is considered a measure of crowding. This paper measures the association between LOS and factors that potentially contribute to LOS measured over consecutive shifts in the ED: shift 1 (7:00 am to 3:00 pm), shift 2 (3:00 pm to 11:00 pm), and shift 3 (11:00 pm to 7:00 am).

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Boarder Patrol: A Reform Policy for America’s Paralyzed Emergency Departments

  Author Affiliation Peter J. Bloomfied, MD, MPH Olive View-UCLA Medical Center, Department of Emergency Medicine, Sylmar, CA; Brotman Medical Center, Department of Emergency Medicine, Culver City, CA Adam B. Landman, MD, MS, MIS Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars Program, Yale University School of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, New Haven, CT; US Department […]

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Ten Solutions for Emergency Department Crowding

  Author Affiliation Robert W. Derlet, MD University of California, Davis School of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine John R. Richards, MD University of California, Davis School of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine INTRODUCTION Over the past decade, emergency department (ED) crowding has occurred and progressed. It has become a major topic of discussion at […]

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Contact Information

WestJEM/ Department of Emergency Medicine
UC Irvine Health

3800 W Chapman Ave Ste 3200
Orange, CA 92868, USA
Phone: 1-714-456-6389
Email: editor@westjem.org

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WestJEM
ISSN: 1936-900X
e-ISSN: 1936-9018

CPC-EM
ISSN: 2474-252X

Our Philosophy

Emergency Medicine is a specialty which closely reflects societal challenges and consequences of public policy decisions. The emergency department specifically deals with social injustice, health and economic disparities, violence, substance abuse, and disaster preparedness and response. This journal focuses on how emergency care affects the health of the community and population, and conversely, how these societal challenges affect the composition of the patient population who seek care in the emergency department. The development of better systems to provide emergency care, including technology solutions, is critical to enhancing population health.