Effect and Safety of Implementing a Pediatric Triage Track in a Public Medical Helpline in Denmark
试验速览
- 阶段
- 不适用
- 状态
- 已完成
- 发起方
- 入组人数
- 244,000
- 试验地点
- 1
- 主要终点
- Referral to hospital after the primary call to Medical Helpline 1813 (MH1813)
研究概览
简要总结
Children under three years old often fall ill. While most illnesses are mild, they often lead to worry which contributes to a high number of contacts with general practitioners and acute medical services such as the Medical Helpline 1813 (MH1813). The MH1813 is a free urgent medical helpline staffed by healthcare professionals and intended for acute medical conditions that cannot wait until the general practitioner is available the following day. About 25% of the calls to MH1813 regards a child under the age of 10 years. To improve triage, MH1813 implemented video triage and educational video tutorials for parents. In July 2022, a pediatric triage track was established to route calls concerning children to specialists in pediatrics, ensuring better expertise. The hypothesis is that this new pediatric triage track have reduced hospital referrals safely, without increasing ambulance dispatches or severe incidents.
详细描述
Background Children below the age of three experience on average three sick days per month, leading to their absence from daycare centers.(1) Fortunately, young children most often have mild symptoms and do not require medical interventions or physical evaluation by a doctor. However, parents of sick children report significant worry,(2,3) which may explain the high number of acute contacts with general practitioners, the MH 1813 and other out-of-hours medical services, as well as hospital referrals.
The Medical Helpline 1813
The MMH1813, Copenhagen Medical Services, Capital Region, serves 1.8 million citizens, including 240,000 under 12 years. The MH1813 is staffed by nurses and physicians. The call-handler has two options at the end of the call:
- Patient self-care at home, with the option to repeat the contact to the MH1813 or contact the general practitioner the following day, or
- refer the patient to hospitals in the Capital Region, Denmark.
In 2021, the MH1813 received about 1 million calls, and close to 25% involved children aged 0-10 years.(4) The quality of telephone triage at the MH1813 greatly impacts affected children, parents, and the healthcare system. Similar services are used in other countries and are expected to be implemented in other regions of Denmark in the future.
研究设计
- 研究类型
- Observational
- 观察模型
- Cohort
- 时间视角
- Prospective
入排标准
- 年龄范围
- 0 Years 至 12 Years（Child）
- 性别
- All
- 接受健康志愿者
- 否
入选标准
- •Calls regarding children aged up to 11.9 years
排除标准
- •Calls regarding children or adults older than 12 years
结局指标
主要结局
Referral to hospital after the primary call to Medical Helpline 1813 (MH1813)
时间窗: 72 hours from the primary call to MH1813
次要结局
- Duration of the primary call(During the primary call to MH1813)
- Children referred to hospitals within 72 hours after the primary call(72 hours from the primary call to MH1813)
- Children who received video triage during the primary call(During the primary call to MH1813)
- "Tips from Pediatricians" sent to parents during the primary call(During the primary call to MH1813)
- Repeated calls for telephone triage within 72 hours from the primary call(72 hours from the primary call to MH1813)
- Children examined at hospitals within 72 hours after the primary call(72 hours from the primary call to MH1813)
- Duration of hospital admission and admission lengths: 0-11.9 hours, 12-23.9 hours, 24-72 hours, more than 72 hours(72 hours from the primary call to MH1813)
- Hospital discharge diagnoses within 72 hours after the primary call(72 hours from the primary call to MH1813)
- Children examined at hospital with diagnoses related to mild diseases(72 hours from the primary call to MH1813)