[Frequent users of the emergency department: current knowledge and future opportunities]

Frequent users of the emergency department (ED) who contribute to ED overcrowding are a well-known public health issue. An integrative and multidisciplinary approach through case management (CM) is the intervention of choice to reduce the number of ED visits. This strategy seems to work particularly well among patients with psychiatric comorbidities and could also be implemented in the prehospital setting in collaboration with emergency medical services and primary care physicians. The actual implementation of CM has however not yet progressed. Ongoing studies aimed at proving the economic and medical efficiency of CM could lead to a wider implementation in the future.