@article{article_1591289, title={A Pediatric Emergency Department Experience: Causes of Ambulance Use}, journal={Samsun Medical Journal}, volume={3}, pages={36–45}, year={2025}, author={Akça, Ünal and Akça, Gülfer and Karatekin, Şeyma}, keywords={ambulans, Çocuk Acil, ön bildirim, sevk}, abstract={Objective: Interhospital patient referrals occur when patients require advanced medical care and treatment and the staff, equipment, and medico-technical facilities at the referring hospital are insufficient to meet these needs. The aim of this study is to comprehensively evaluate the demographic, clinical and referral process characteristics of patients referred to the pediatric emergency department via 112 emergency health services and referred to other health institutions from this unit.
Method: The demographic characteristics, time of admission, clinical complaints, inpatient services, referral centers, and reasons for referral were retrospectively analyzed in patients admitted to and referred from the pediatric emergency department of Samsun Training and Research Hospital between January 2023 and December 2023.
Results: A total of 873 patients (626 incoming and 247 outgoing) were included in the study. The mean age of the patients was 86.93±63.31 months. Most of the incoming patients (79.7%, n=499) were transferred without prior notification. The most common day of admission was Friday, the most common season was spring, and the most common shift was 16-24 hours. The majority of patients were referred for abdominal pain (26.7%, n=167), seizures (11.9%, n=75), and respiratory distress (8.9%, n=56). Of the presenting patients, 56.7% (355/626) were admitted to the hospital. The most common diagnoses among the transferred patients were seizure disorders (23.8%, n=59), traumatic injuries (8.9%, n=22), and oncologic conditions.
Conclusion: The referral chain plays a pivotal critical role in the management of pediatric emergencies. Deficiencies in communication and resources availability during the referral process may adversely affect impact the quality of patient care. Therefore, it is essential to standardize referral criteria, enhance in-service training for healthcare professionals, and implement structured health policies to ensure effective patient transfer and continuity of care.}, number={2}, publisher={Samsun Üniversitesi}