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A global survey of emergency department responses to the COVID-19 pandemic

Mahajan, Prashant ; Shu-Ling, Chong ; Gutierrez, Camilo ; White, Emily ; Cher, Benjamin A.Y. ; Freiheit, Elizabeth ; Belle, Apoorva ; Kaartinen, Johanna ; Kumar, Vijaya Arun and Middleton, Paul M. , et al. (2021) In Western Journal of Emergency Medicine 22(5). p.1037-1044
Abstract

Introduction: Emergency departments (ED) globally are addressing the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic with varying degrees of success. We leveraged the 17-country, Emergency Medicine Education & Research by Global Experts (EMERGE) network and non-EMERGE ED contacts to understand ED emergency preparedness and practices globally when combating the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: We electronically surveyed EMERGE and non-EMERGE EDs from April 3-June 1, 2020 on ED capacity, pandemic preparedness plans, triage methods, staffing, supplies, and communication practices. The survey was available in English, Mandarin Chinese, and Spanish to optimize participation. We analyzed survey responses using descriptive statistics. Results:... (More)

Introduction: Emergency departments (ED) globally are addressing the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic with varying degrees of success. We leveraged the 17-country, Emergency Medicine Education & Research by Global Experts (EMERGE) network and non-EMERGE ED contacts to understand ED emergency preparedness and practices globally when combating the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: We electronically surveyed EMERGE and non-EMERGE EDs from April 3-June 1, 2020 on ED capacity, pandemic preparedness plans, triage methods, staffing, supplies, and communication practices. The survey was available in English, Mandarin Chinese, and Spanish to optimize participation. We analyzed survey responses using descriptive statistics. Results: 74/129 (57%) EDs from 28 countries in all six World Health Organization global regions responded. Most EDs were in Asia (49%), followed by North America (28%), and Europe (14%). Nearly all EDs (97%) developed and implemented protocols for screening, testing, and treating patients with suspected COVID-19 infections. Sixty percent responded that provider staffing/back-up plans were ineffective. Many sites (47/74, 64%) reported staff missing work due to possible illness with the highest provider proportion of COVID-19 exposures and infections among nurses. Conclusion: Despite having disaster plans in place, ED pandemic preparedness and response continue to be a challenge. Global emergency research networks are vital for generating and disseminating large-scale event data, which is particularly important during a pandemic.

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publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Western Journal of Emergency Medicine
volume
22
issue
5
pages
8 pages
publisher
University of California, Los Angeles
external identifiers
  • scopus:85116064850
ISSN
1936-900X
DOI
10.5811/WESTJEM.2021.3.50358
language
English
LU publication?
yes
additional info
Publisher Copyright: © 2021 Mahajan et al. This is an open access article distributed in accordance with the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) License.
id
cade606a-1123-471a-be44-def4705dd0d6
date added to LUP
2021-10-21 14:08:37
date last changed
2025-01-26 17:41:42
@article{cade606a-1123-471a-be44-def4705dd0d6,
  abstract     = {{<p>Introduction: Emergency departments (ED) globally are addressing the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic with varying degrees of success. We leveraged the 17-country, Emergency Medicine Education &amp; Research by Global Experts (EMERGE) network and non-EMERGE ED contacts to understand ED emergency preparedness and practices globally when combating the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: We electronically surveyed EMERGE and non-EMERGE EDs from April 3-June 1, 2020 on ED capacity, pandemic preparedness plans, triage methods, staffing, supplies, and communication practices. The survey was available in English, Mandarin Chinese, and Spanish to optimize participation. We analyzed survey responses using descriptive statistics. Results: 74/129 (57%) EDs from 28 countries in all six World Health Organization global regions responded. Most EDs were in Asia (49%), followed by North America (28%), and Europe (14%). Nearly all EDs (97%) developed and implemented protocols for screening, testing, and treating patients with suspected COVID-19 infections. Sixty percent responded that provider staffing/back-up plans were ineffective. Many sites (47/74, 64%) reported staff missing work due to possible illness with the highest provider proportion of COVID-19 exposures and infections among nurses. Conclusion: Despite having disaster plans in place, ED pandemic preparedness and response continue to be a challenge. Global emergency research networks are vital for generating and disseminating large-scale event data, which is particularly important during a pandemic.</p>}},
  author       = {{Mahajan, Prashant and Shu-Ling, Chong and Gutierrez, Camilo and White, Emily and Cher, Benjamin A.Y. and Freiheit, Elizabeth and Belle, Apoorva and Kaartinen, Johanna and Kumar, Vijaya Arun and Middleton, Paul M. and Ng, Chip Jin and Osei-Kwame, Daniel and Roth, Dominik and Sinja, Tej Prakash and Galwankar, Sagar and Nypaver, Michele and Kuppermann, Nathan and EKelund, Ulf}},
  issn         = {{1936-900X}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{5}},
  pages        = {{1037--1044}},
  publisher    = {{University of California, Los Angeles}},
  series       = {{Western Journal of Emergency Medicine}},
  title        = {{A global survey of emergency department responses to the COVID-19 pandemic}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.5811/WESTJEM.2021.3.50358}},
  doi          = {{10.5811/WESTJEM.2021.3.50358}},
  volume       = {{22}},
  year         = {{2021}},
}