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Patient presentations to an after-hours general practice, an urgent care clinic and an emergency department on Sundays: a comparative, observational study
Journal article   Peer reviewed

Patient presentations to an after-hours general practice, an urgent care clinic and an emergency department on Sundays: a comparative, observational study

John William Adie, Wayne Graham, Ryan O'Donnell and Marianne Wallis
Journal of health organization and management, Vol.37(1), pp.96-115
04/04/2023
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JHOM-08-2021-0308
PMID: 36627231

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Abstract

Urgent care After-hours care Ambulatory care facilities Community health networks General practice Health systems Health system performance (incl. effectiveness of programs)
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to determine which factors are associated with 6,065 patient presentations with non-life-threatening urgent conditions (NLTUCs) to an after-hours general practice, an urgent care clinic (UCC) and an emergency department (ED) on Sundays in Southeast Queensland (Qld). Design/methodology/approach A retrospective, comparative and observational study was conducted involving the auditing of medical records of patients with NLTUCs consulting three medical services between 0,800 and 1,700 h, on Sundays, over a one-year period. The study was limited to 6,065 patients. Findings There were statistically significant differences in choice of location according to age, number of postcodes from the patient's residence, time of the day, season, patient presentations for infection and injury, non-infectious, non-injurious conditions of the circulatory, gastrointestinal and genitourinary systems, and need for imaging, pathology, plastering/back-slab application, splinting and wound closure. Older adults were more likely to be admitted to the hospital and Ed Short Stay Unit, compared with other age groups.

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