Most ED visits avoidable, a new Sachs study shows
Increasing access to clinics cuts costs
More than half of all emergency department (ED) visits could be handled in other less-costly ambulatory settings, according to recently released data from Sachs Group, a health care consulting company in Evanston, IL.
The Sachs Group compared true emergencies with non-emergent ED encounters in more than 1 million ED insurance claims filed by both commercial insurance plan members and Medicare beneficiaries.
Other findings of the Sachs research include the following:
• 78% of conditions bringing children age 17 and younger into the ED could be treated in other ambulatory settings, such as doctors’ offices and clinics.
• 35% of ED visits for adults more than 65 years old are for non-emergent care.
In addition, Sachs analysts note that the highest volume of ED visits occurs on weekends and after traditional business office hours. Sachs suggests health systems increase physician office and clinic hours to relieve the burden on hospital EDs.
(For additional information, visit www.sachs. com.)
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