ArticleBMC public health2019
Social factors in frequent callers: a description of isolation, poverty and quality of life in those calling emergency medical services frequently.
Article in BMC public health, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 45 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
45 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 86 citations in OpenAlex.
- Pooled it
- Systematic review of social prescribing and older adults: where to from here?Family medicine and community health · 2022Pooled it
- Effects of the Community Paramedicine at Clinic (CP@clinic) program on the health behaviours of older adults residing in social housing: secondary outcomes of a cluster-randomized trial.BMC public health · 2025Trial
- Effectiveness of the community paramedicine at home (CP@home) program for frequent users of emergency medical services in Ontario: a randomized controlled trial.BMC health services research · 2024Trial
- Effectiveness of Multidisciplinary "Case Management" Approaches to the Management of Patients Who Make High Use of the Emergency Ambulance Service: A Quasi-experimental Evaluation Using Linked Routine Records.Journal of the American College of Emergency Physicians open · 2026Article
- Social Vulnerability and Out-of-Hospital Identification of Neurologic Emergencies.Annals of emergency medicine · 2026Article
- A national description of emergency medical services patient utilization patterns.Health affairs scholar · 2026Article
- Perspectives from healthcare providers and decision-makers on strategies toward a future hospital: qualitative insights from a group modelling process.BMC health services research · 2026Article
- Loneliness and emotional support helpline use in Spain: a 20-year observational study.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- Disparities between two possible thresholds for frequent contacts to a Norwegian emergency medical communication centre: ≥5 contacts in one month vs. ≥12 contacts in three months.BMC emergency medicine · 2025Article
- Changes of public behavior alter weather-dependent strain on emergency medical services.World journal of emergency medicine · 2025Article
- Frequent callers vs. frequent users - a scoping review of frequent contacts to the emergency medical services.International journal of emergency medicine · 2025Review
- Nationwide study of emergency care quality for patients with substance use disorders and dual diagnoses across three distinct patient populations.BMC psychiatry · 2025Article
- Strengthening the WHO Emergency Care Systems Framework: insights from an integrated, patient-centered approach in the Copenhagen Emergency Medical Services system-a qualitative system analysis.BMC health services research · 2025Article
- "I surely don't call for fun": experiences of being a "frequent caller" to the Danish emergency helpline.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Frequent callers contacting the Norwegian national emergency medical number 113: a retrospective study.Scandinavian journal of trauma, resuscitation and emergency medicine · 2024Article
- 'We are expected to be problem solvers'-Paramedics' performance expectations through the lens of organizational socialization: An interview study.Nursing open · 2024Article
- 'If It Was Easy Somebody Would Have Fixed It': An Exploration of Loneliness and Social Isolation Amongst People Who Frequently Call Ambulance Services.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2024Article
- Prior emergency medical services utilization is a risk factor for in-hospital death among patients with substance misuse: a retrospective cohort study.BMC emergency medicine · 2024Article
- Examining an Alternate Care Pathway for Mental Health and Addiction Prehospital Emergencies in Ontario, Canada: A Critical Analysis.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 4 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundFrequent users of emergency medical services (EMS) comprise a disproportionate percentage of emergency department (ED) visits. EDs are becoming increasingly overwhelmed and a portion of use by frequent callers of EMS is potentially avoidable. Social factors contribute to frequent use however few studies have examined their prevalence. This study aims to describe social isolation/loneliness, poverty, and quality of life in a sample of frequent callers of EMS in the Hamilton region, a southern Ontario mid-sized Canadian city. STUDY
designCross-sectional quantitative study.
methodsWe surveyed people who called EMS five or more times within 12 months. A mailed self-administered survey with validated tools, and focused on four major measures: demographic information, social isolation, poverty, and quality of life.
resultsSixty-seven frequent EMS callers revealed that 37-49% were lonely, 14% had gone hungry in the preceding month, and 43% had difficulties making ends meet at the end of the month. For quality of life, 78% had mobility problems, 55% had difficulty with self-care, 78% had difficulty with usual activities, 87% experienced pain/discomfort, and 67% had anxiety/depression. Overall quality adjusted life years value was 0.53 on a scale of 0 to 1. The response rate was 41.1%.
conclusionsLoneliness in our participants was more common than Hamilton and Canadian rates. Frequent EMS callers had higher rates of poverty and food insecurity than average Ontario citizens, which may also act as a barrier to accessing preventative health services. Lower quality of life may indicate chronic illness, and users who cannot access ambulatory care services consistently may call EMS more frequently. Frequent callers of EMS had high rates of social loneliness and poverty, and low quality of life, indicating a need for health service optimization for this vulnerable population.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.