ArticleBMC public health2021
Older patients' perspectives on factors contributing to frequent visits to the emergency department: a qualitative interview study.
Article in BMC public health, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 22 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
22 citing papers in PubMed, 44 citations in OpenAlex.
- Qualitative study to explore which components of home-based primary care may reduce emergency department visits among older adults.BMJ open · 2026Article
- What really matters to older adults in life and treatment: a qualitative study on the role of connectedness in person-centered care.BMC geriatrics · 2026Article
- Association of the barthel index with mortality and intensive care unit admission in older patients presenting to the emergency department.BMC geriatrics · 2026Observational
- Care Pathways After Acute Myocardial Infarction: A Gender-Based Perspective.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Article
- Social risks of geriatric patients presenting to the emergency department.BMC geriatrics · 2026Article
- Regional Patterns of Multimorbidity and Hospitalization in Saskatchewan's Aging Population.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Home Healthcare Needs and Characteristics of Patients with Serious Illnesses Who Use Hospital-Affiliated Home-Based Medical Care in Korea.Yonsei medical journal · 2026Observational
- Municipal healthcare providers' perceptions of reasons for frequent and unplanned hospital admissions among home-dwelling older adults: a Norwegian focus group study.BMC geriatrics · 2025Article
- Perceptions of Frail Older Adults on Contributing Factors Causing the Onset of Crises Leading to Hospital Admissions: A Qualitative Study.Journal of advanced nursing · 2025Article
- Are unmet health related social needs associated with emergency department utilization among Medicare beneficiaries?BMC health services research · 2025Article
- Article
- Homecare workers - an untapped resource in preventing emergency department visits among older individuals? A qualitative interview study from Sweden.BMC geriatrics · 2024Article
- Older adults experience of transition to the community from the emergency department: a qualitative evidence synthesis.BMC geriatrics · 2024Article
- Older Adult Patients in the Emergency Department: Which Patients should be Selected for a Different Approach?Annals of geriatric medicine and research · 2024Article
- Transitions of care for older adults discharged home from the emergency department: an inductive thematic content analysis of patient comments.BMC geriatrics · 2024Observational
- Article
- The risk factors of the 72-h unscheduled return visit admission to emergency department in adults below 50 years old.European journal of medical research · 2023Article
- A causal loop diagram of older persons' emergency department visits and interactions of its contributing factors: a group model building approach.European geriatric medicine · 2023Article
- Prevalence of factors contributing to unplanned hospital readmission of older medical patients when assessed by patients, their significant others and healthcare professionals: a cross-sectional survey.European geriatric medicine · 2023Observational
- Factors Associated with Return Visits by Elders within 72 Hours of Discharge from the Emergency Department.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundOlder patients are at high risk of unplanned revisits to the emergency department (ED) because of their medical complexity. To reduce the number of ED visits, we need more knowledge about the patient-level, environmental, and healthcare factors involved. The aim of this study was to describe older patients' perspectives and experiences before and after an ED visit, and to identify factors that possibly contribute to frequent ED revisits.
methodsThis was a qualitative description study. We performed semi-structured individual interviews with older patients who frequently visited the ED and were discharged home after an acute visit. Patients were enrolled in the ED of a university medical centre using purposive sampling. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and coded independently by two researchers. Theoretical analysis was used to identify recurring patterns and themes in the data. Interviews were conducted until thematic saturation was reached.
resultsIn-depth interviews were completed with 13 older patients. Three main themes emerged: 1) medical events leading to feelings of crisis, 2) patients' untreated health problems, and 3) persistent problems in health and daily functioning post discharge. Participants identified problems before and after their ED visit that possibly contributed to further ED visits. These problems included increasing symptoms leading to feelings of crisis, the relationship with the general practitioner, incomplete discharge information at the ED, and inadequate follow-up and lack of recovery after an ED visit.
conclusionsThis qualitative study identified multiple factors that may contribute to frequent ED visits among older patients. Older patients in need of acute care might benefit from hospital-at-home interventions, or acute care provided by geriatric emergency teams in the primary care setting. Identifying frailty in the ED is needed to improve discharge communication and adequate follow-up is needed to improve recovery after an acute ED visit.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
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.