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New Delhi, September 07, 2019 :
A new study published in the September issue of Health Affairs has found that hospital emergency room closures can adversely affect health outcomes for heart attack patients at neighbouring hospitals that are near or at full capacity. Conversely, when a new emergency department opens, health outcomes for patients at those so-called “bystander” hospitals improve. The study, believed to be the first to evaluate the impact of emergency department openings and closures on bystander emergency departments, looked specifically at outcomes for heart attack patients. But researchers said the findings have implications for all patients, particularly in communities where inadequate health resources contribute to disproportionately poor health outcomes.
● When the closure of an emergency department resulted in an increased travel time of 30 minutes or more to get to another hospital, health outcomes for patients in the bystander hospitals were negative. The one-year mortality rate for patients in those hospitals increased by 8% and the 30-day readmission rate increased by 6%. The likelihood of the same patients receiving the cardiac procedure declined by 4%.
● When an emergency department opened and reduced that driving time by at least 30 minutes, the patients in the bystander hospitals experienced a reduction in one-year mortality by 5%. The likelihood of these patients receiving the cardiac procedure improved by 12%.
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