Efficacy of a four-tier infection response system in the emergency department during the coronavirus disease-2019 outbreak

Acute care pathway assessed through performance indicators during the COVID-19 pandemic in OECD countries (2020-2021): a scoping review

BACKGROUND

The COVID-19 pandemic severely impacted care for non-COVID patients. Performance indicators to monitor acute care, timely reported and internationally accepted, lacked during the pandemic in OECD countries. This study aims to summarize the performance indicators available in the literature to monitor changes in the quality of acute care in OECD countries during the first year and a half of the pandemic (2020-July 2021) and to assess their trends.

METHODS

Scoping review. Search in Embase and MEDLINE (07-07-2022). Acute care performance indicators and indicators related to acute general surgery were collected and collated following a care pathway approach. Indicators assessing identical clinical measures were grouped under a common indicator title. The trends from each group of indicators were collated (increase/decrease/stable).

RESULTS

A total of 152 studies were included. 2354 indicators regarding general acute care and 301 indicators related to acute general surgery were included. Indicators focusing on pre-hospital services reported a decreasing trend in the volume of patients: from 225 indicators, 110 (49%) reported a decrease. An increasing trend in pre-hospital treatment times was reported by most of the indicators (n = 41;70%) and a decreasing trend in survival rates of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (n = 61;75%). Concerning care provided in the emergency department, most of the indicators (n = 752;71%) showed a decreasing trend in admissions across all levels of urgency. Concerning the mortality rate after admission, most of the indicators (n = 23;53%) reported an increasing trend. The subset of indicators assessing acute general surgery showed a decreasing trend in the volume of patients (n = 50;49%), stability in clinical severity at admission (n = 36;53%), and in the volume of surgeries (n = 14;47%). Most of the indicators (n = 28;65%) reported no change in treatment approach and stable mortality rate (n = 11,69%).

CONCLUSION

This review signals relevant disruptions across the acute care pathway. A subset of general surgery performance indicators showed stability in most of the phases of the care pathway. These results highlight the relevance of assessing this care pathway more regularly and systematically across different clinical entities to monitor disruptions and to improve the resilience of emergency services during a crisis.

Comparing the 30-Day Mortality for Hip Fractures in Patients with and without COVID-19: An Updated Meta-Analysis

We conducted an updated meta-analysis to evaluate the 30-day mortality of hip fractures during the COVID-19 pandemic and assess mortality rates by country. We systematically searched Medline, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library up to November 2022 for studies on the 30-day mortality of hip fractures during the pandemic. Two reviewers used the Newcastle-Ottawa tool to independently assess the methodological quality of the included studies. We conducted a meta-analysis and systematic review including 40 eligible studies with 17,753 patients with hip fractures, including 2280 patients with COVID-19 (12.8%). The overall 30-day mortality rate for hip fractures during the pandemic was 12.6% from published studies. The 30-day mortality of patients with hip fractures who had COVID-19 was significantly higher than those without COVID-19 (OR, 7.10; 95% CI, 5.51-9.15; I² = 57%). The hip fracture mortality rate increased during the pandemic and varied by country, with the highest rates found in Europe, particularly the United Kingdom (UK) and Spain. COVID-19 may have contributed to the increased 30-day mortality rate in hip fracture patients. The mortality rate of hip fracture in patients without COVID-19 did not change during the pandemic.

Advantage of Vital Sign Monitoring Using a Wireless Wearable Device for Predicting Septic Shock in Febrile Patients in the Emergency Department: A Machine Learning-Based Analysis

Intermittent manual measurement of vital signs may not rapidly predict sepsis development in febrile patients admitted to the emergency department (ED). We aimed to evaluate the predictive performance of a wireless monitoring device that continuously measures heart rate (HR) and respiratory rate (RR) and a machine learning analysis in febrile but stable patients in the ED. We analysed 468 patients (age, ≥18 years; training set, n = 277; validation set, n = 93; test set, n = 98) having fever (temperature >38 °C) and admitted to the isolation care unit of the ED. The AUROC of the fragmented model with device data was 0.858 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.809−0.908), and that with manual data was 0.841 (95% CI, 0.789−0.893). The AUROC of the accumulated model with device data was 0.861 (95% CI, 0.811−0.910), and that with manual data was 0.853 (95% CI, 0.803−0.903). Fragmented and accumulated models with device data detected clinical deterioration in febrile patients at risk of septic shock 9 h and 5 h 30 min earlier, respectively, than those with manual data. Continuous vital sign monitoring using a wearable device could accurately predict clinical deterioration and reduce the time to recognise potential clinical deterioration in stable ED patients with fever.

Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in Emergency Department Healthcare Workers at Sírio-Libanês Hospital, Brazil

COVID-19 has spread rapidly worldwide. Information on its prevalence and factors associated with infection are important for protecting both professionals and patients in healthcare centers. This study evaluated the seroprevalence of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 and its association with the degree of exposure and use of personal protective equipment by healthcare professionals dedicated to the treatment of patients with flu-like illnesses in the emergency room. The research team included an analysis of healthcare professionals who underwent enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay serological testing for SARS-CoV-2 between May 28 and June 26, 2020, in the emergency room of Sírio-Libanês Hospital in São Paulo, Brazil. Participants answered individual questionnaires on occupational information, medical health history, and factors associated with exposure to the novel coronavirus. The questionnaire variables were compared based on the serological results. Of the 164 study participants, 96 (58.54%) reported at least 1 flu-like symptom and 42 (25.61%) presented serology results that were compatible with SARS-CoV-2 infection. The asymptomatic declared group accounted for 62 participants; of these, 8 (12.90%) had positive serology results (neutralizing antibody and IgG) for SARS-CoV-2. Data analysis showed a positive correlation with duration of work, safety in wearing and reusing personal protective equipment, and presence of anosmia, and showed a negative relationship with duration of mask use. Our findings suggest that the perception of symptoms by healthcare professionals is not a good screening parameter for the diagnosis of an infectious disease with respiratory symptoms, such as COVID-19. The main influencing factor for the control of infection is the elaboration of workflows and safety protocols based on simple and clear rules as well as investments in team training.

Comparative Evaluation of the Prognosis of Septic Shock Patients from Before to After the Onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Retrospective Single-Center Clinical Analysis

In this study, we investigated the mortality of septic shock patients visiting emergency departments (ED) before and after the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic onset. We retrospectively reviewed medical records and National Emergency Department Information System data of septic shock patients who visited the ED of a tertiary medical center in South Korea from February 2019 to February 2021. Following the COVID-19 pandemic onset, revised institutional ED processes included a stringent isolation protocol for patients visiting the ED. The primary goal of this study was to determine the mortality rate of septic shock patients from before and after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Durations of vasopressor use, mechanical ventilation, intensive care unit stay, and hospitalization were investigated. The mortality rates increased from 24.8% to 35.8%, before and after COVID-19-onset, but the difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.079). No significant differences in other outcomes were found. Multivariable analysis revealed that the Simplified Acute Physiology Score III (SAPS III) was the only risk factor for mortality (OR 1.07; 95% CI 1.04-1.10), whereas COVID-19 pandemic was not included in the final model. The non-significant influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on septic shock mortality rates in the present study belies the actual mortality-influencing potential of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Changes in Clinical Characteristics among Febrile Patients Visiting the Emergency Department before and after the COVID-19 Outbreak

PURPOSE

Considering the risk of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) transmission through infected droplets, emergency department (ED) operations in response to febrile patients should be planned. We investigated the general and clinical characteristics of febrile patients visiting the ED and changes in admission rates via the ED during the COVID-19 outbreak.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We performed a retrospective analysis of prospectively collected patients who visited 402 EDs in the Republic of Korea with febrile symptoms between January 27 and May 31, 2020 and compared them to those enrolled before the COVID-19 outbreak. The primary outcome was admission rate; the secondary outcome was length of stay (LOS) in the ED.

RESULTS

In total, 266519 patients had febrile symptoms at ED presentation after the COVID-19 outbreak. In 2019, before the outbreak, there were 437762 patients. The rate of ED visits among pediatric patients (aged <15 years) decreased to 21.4% after the COVID-19 outbreak, compared with 41.8% in 2019. The proportion of patients admitted after ED management was higher after the outbreak (31.3%) than before (25.2%). The adjusted odds ratio for admission was 1.04 (95% confidence interval: 1.02-1.05) after the outbreak. Compared to before the COVID-19 outbreak, the median ED LOS increased by 16 min after the outbreak.

CONCLUSION

This study confirmed that admission rates and ED LOS increased for febrile patients visiting the ED after the COVID-19 outbreak. This could provide evidence for developing ED-related strategies in response to the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak and other infectious disease pandemics.