Photo Credit: Vadym Terelyuk

A study published in JAMA Network Open showed that a small percentage of reasons for visits could be accurately categorized to a specific medical urgency category compared with all visits based on discharge diagnoses, and a limited concordance between reasons for visit and discharge diagnoses was found. According to Theodoros V. Giannouchos, PhD, MS, MPharm, and colleague, 40% of all ED visits are medically nonurgent, potentially diverting ED visits for less medically urgent conditions to more cost-effective settings. The cross-sectional study included data from 190.7 million ED visits among patients aged 18 or older. The study found that approximately 38.5% and 53.9% of all ED visits were with 100% and 75% probabilities, respectively; however, only 0.4% and 12.4% of encounters aligned with patients’ stated reasons for visits at 100% and 75% probabilities, respectively. Based on their results, Dr. Giannouchos and team suggested alternative methods be explored to identify the medical necessity of ED encounters more accurately.