Effect of the 4-h target on time-to-analgesia in an Australian emergency department: a pilot retrospective observational study.

Conclusion NEAT is a significant health policy initiative with little clinical evidence supporting its implementation. However, as the Admitted NEAT compliance increases, the probability of receiving analgesia increases, demonstrating a possible link between hospital function and clinical care provision that needs to be explored further.What is known about the topic? The 4-h target or NEAT is a widely used initiative in EDs to allay crowding and access block. However, little is known of its impact on clinical endpoints, such as TTA.What does this paper add? TTA was not significantly reduced as NEAT compliance increased. However, when the focus was on the probability of receiving analgesia, the results demonstrated that an improvement in Admitted and Short Stay NEAT compliance was associated with an increase in the likelihood of patients receiving analgesia.What are the implications for practitioners? NEAT is a relatively recent initiative, hence evidence of its effect on clinically orientated outcomes is limited. Nevertheless, evidence of safety and effectiveness is emerging. The results of the present pilot study provide preliminary data on the timeliness of patient-centred care as demonstrated by TTA and administration of analgesia when required. Further, the results would seem to suggest that the provision of analgesia is affected by how timely patients are moved out of the ED to the in-patient setting. As for future investigations on TTA as a result of NEAT, a wider time ...

Source: Australian Health Review - June 1, 2016 Category: Hospital Management Authors: Hughes JA, Cabilan CJ, Staib A Tags: Aust Health Rev Source Type: research