Researchers find patients who frequent ED have higher mortality, outpatient visits

Patients who frequent the emergency department repeatedly have higher mortality rates and a greater number of hospital admissions and outpatient visits, compared with non-frequent ED users, according to recently published data.“Our results suggest that, despite heterogeneity, frequent users are a distinct and high risk group. Depending on the definition employed, they may include subgroups of patients with mental health and addiction issues, homelessness or unstable housing, chronic diseases … and patients who make frequent visits with conditions that may require transient increased needs. Based on the available evidence, frequent users appear to be at increased risk of death, admissions per visit, admissions per patient and outpatient visits,” the researchers wrote.