%0 Journal Article
%T Are hospitals with both medical/surgical and psychiatric services associated with decreased difficulty in ambulance transfer for patients with self-harm behaviour? A nationwide retrospective observational study using ambulance transfer data in Japan
%J BMJ open
%D 2023
%A Chiba, Takuyo
%A Takaku, Reo
%A Ito, Erina
%A Tamune, Hidetaka
%A Rivera, Marisa
%A Ikeda, Shunya
%A Shiga, Takashi
%V 13
%N 2
%P e065466-e065466
%X OBJECTIVES: Ambulance diversion and prolonged prehospital transfer time have a significant impact on patient care outcomes. Self-harm behaviour in particular is associated with difficulty in hospital acceptance and longer prehospital transfer time. This study aimed to determine if hospitals with both medical/surgical and psychiatric inpatient beds and high-level emergency care centres are associated with a decreased rate of difficulty in hospital acceptance and shorter prehospital transfer time for patients seeking medical care after self-harm behaviour. DESIGN AND SETTING: A retrospective observational study using the database of Japanese ambulance dispatch data in 2015. PARTICIPANTS: Patients who were transferred by ambulances after self-harm behaviour. INTERVENTIONS: None. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Multivariable logistic regression analysis and multivariable linear regression analysis were performed to assess whether the presence of hospitals with both medical/surgical and psychiatric inpatient beds and high-level emergency care centres in the city were associated with a decreased rate of difficulty in hospital acceptance and shorter prehospital transfer time. <br><br>RESULTS: The number of transfers due to self-harm behaviour in 2015 was 32 849. There was an association between decreased difficulty in hospital acceptance and the presence of high-level emergency care centres (OR 0.63, 95% CI 0.55 to 0.71, p<0.01) and hospitals with both medical/surgical and psychiatric inpatient beds (OR 0.50, 95% CI 0.38 to 0.66, p<0.01). There was a significant reduction in prehospital transfer time in the city with high-level emergency care centres (4.21 min, 95% CI 3.53 to 4.89, p<0.01) and hospitals with medical/surgical and psychiatric inpatient beds (3.46 min, 95% CI 2.15 to 4.77, p<0.01). <br><br>CONCLUSION: Hospitals with both medical/surgical and psychiatric inpatient beds and high-level emergency care centres were associated with significant decrease in difficulty in hospital acceptance and shorter prehospital transfer time.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>
%G en
%I BMJ Publishing Group
%@ 2044-6055
%U http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2022-065466