The Effect of Telehealth Ontario on Non-urgent Emergency Department Use at The Hospital for Sick Children

NCT00625027 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: 1000004841
• Study Type: observational
• Target: 115
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to compare the rate of non-urgent emergency department use between three groups of patients: those who were referred to the emergency department by Telehealth Ontario; those who were referred by a physician; and those who arrived without being advised by a nurse or a doctor.

Conditions

Emergency Department Visit

Keywords

Emergency Department Visit; Telehealth Ontario; Triage Levels

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• The triage categories among patients who did or did not have contact with a health care professional prior to arrival in the ED.

  At time of visit to the ED

Secondary Outcomes (1)

• The demographic and other details of patients arriving with urgent compared to non- urgent complaints.

  At time of visit to the ED

Study Arms (1)

Group 1

Children presenting to the Emergency Department under the care of a parent or guardian, between 0600 and 2400 during the study period.

Other: Survey and Chart Review

Interventions

Survey and Chart Review OTHER

After obtaining consent the survey will be completed. After a staff physician has assessed the patient, the chart will be consulted to retrieve the triage notes, diagnosis, treatment, and discharge recommendations. The physician will be asked to comment on the 'urgency' of the complaint and whether the patient would have been treated equally well at a walk-in clinic.

Group 1

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: Up to 18 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Child (0-17), Adult (18-64)
• Sampling Method: Probability Sample

Study Population

All children presenting to the ED between 0600 and 2400 during the study period

You may qualify if:

• All children presenting to the ED between 0600 and 2400 during the study period

You may not qualify if:

• Children arriving without an adult, as consent could not be obtained.
• Children with whose parents communication was not possible in English, as it was not possible to provide translation services for this study.
• Children arriving by direct transfer from another hospital.
• Children arriving by ambulance summoned by someone other than the parent or guardian.
• Children arriving at the ED for a pre-arranged visit/appointment.
• Children requiring immediate resuscitation.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• The Hospital for Sick Children: lead

Study Sites (1)

The Hospital for Sick Children

Toronto, Ontario, M5G 1X8, Canada

Location

MeSH Terms

Interventions

Surveys and Questionnaires

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Data Collection; Epidemiologic Methods; Investigative Techniques; Health Care Evaluation Mechanisms; Quality of Health Care; Health Care Quality, Access, and Evaluation; Public Health; Environment and Public Health

Study Officials

• Dennis Scolnik, MB ChB

  The Hospital for Sick Children

  STUDY CHAIR

Study Design

• Study Type: observational
• Observational Model: CASE ONLY
• Time Perspective: PROSPECTIVE
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Staff Physician

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: February 19, 2008
• First Posted: February 28, 2008
• Study Start: March 1, 2004
• Primary Completion: September 1, 2006
• Study Completion: September 1, 2006
• Last Updated: August 2, 2013

Record last verified: 2013-07

Locations

CA (1)