Big Data-Driven Approach for Health Inequalities in Foreign Patients with Injuries Visiting Emergency Rooms

Foreign patients are more likely to receive inappropriate health service in the emergency room. This study aimed to investigate whether there is health inequality between foreigners and natives who visited emergency rooms with injuries and to examine its causes.

We analyzed clinical data from the National Emergency Department Information System database associated with patients of all age groups visiting the emergency room from 2013 to 2015. We analyzed data regarding mortality, intensive care unit admission, emergency operation, severity, area, and transfer ratio.

A total of 4,464,603 cases of injured patients were included, of whom 67,683 were foreign. Injury cases per 100,000 population per year were 2,960.5 for native patients and 1,659.8 for foreign patients. Foreigners were more likely to have no insurance (3.1% vs. 32.0%, p < 0.001). Serious outcomes (intensive care unit admission, emergency operation, or death) were more frequent among foreigners. In rural areas, the difference between serious outcomes for foreigners compared to natives was greater (3.7% for natives vs. 5.0% for foreigners, p < 0.001). The adjusted odds ratio for serious outcomes for foreign nationals was 1.412 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.336-1.492), and that for lack of insurance was 1.354 (95% CI, 1.314-1.394).

Injured foreigners might more frequently suffer serious outcomes, and health inequality was greater in rural areas than in urban areas. Foreign nationality itself and lack of insurance could adversely affect medical outcomes.