Can 'Hot Spotting' Prove to be a Useful Tool to Identify Disproportionate ED Use in the Rural General Hospital...

Area of Science:

• Rural Health
• Health Services Research
• Emergency Medicine

Background:

• 'Hot spotting' typically focuses on urban centers, leaving rural ED utilization patterns under-examined.
• Understanding geographic disparities in Emergency Department (ED) use is crucial for resource allocation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify geographic hotspots of frequent Emergency Department (ED) users within a rural general hospital setting.
• To analyze the characteristics and referral patterns of frequent ED users in a rural population.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of ED attendances over a one-year period (July 2013-June 2014).
• Geographic mapping of frequent and super users, cross-referenced with census data to calculate users per population.
• Examination of aetiologies and referral pathways for frequent ED attenders.

Main Results:

• Identified specific geographic regions with disproportionately high rates of frequent ED users (up to 4.88 per 500 population).
• No correlation found between the number of frequent users and proximity to the hospital.
• Frequent users often presented with mixed aetiologies and utilized multiple referral routes (GP and self-referral).

Conclusions:

• Geographic 'hot spotting' is applicable and reveals concentrated ED use in rural areas.
• Rural EDs experience high demand from specific user groups, irrespective of distance.
• Understanding referral patterns is key to developing targeted interventions for frequent ED users in rural settings.