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Case Management for Frequent Users of the Emergency Department

NCT01934322 · Status: COMPLETED · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 250

Last updated 2015-05-27

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

The purpose of this study is to evaluate a specific case management intervention for frequent users (FU) of Emergency Department (ED).

Compared to infrequent or non-users, most of the ED-FU visitors are identified as vulnerable patients because they are more likely to be of low social and economical status, be more isolated and live alone. They report more chronic medical conditions, have a higher mortality rate and consume more healthcare resources.

In the literature, interventions aimed at improving the management of ED-FU have demonstrated several positive outcomes, but there are still some knowledge gaps.

The proposed project tests the hypotheses that case management intervention as compared with standard emergency care

* is a more efficient use of healthcare resources and reduces ED attendance,
* is cost-saving and
* improves quality of life,
* altogether leading to favorable cost-utility ratio.

Conditions

  • Frequent Users of the Emergency Department
  • Vulnerable Populations

Interventions

OTHER

Case Management

Furnish specific assistance and to provide referrals for the patients: * If the social determinants are not adequate, the team will lend assistance for obtaining income entitlements, health insurance coverage if eligible, stable housing, schooling for children, etc. * If there are mental disturbances, the team will refer to mental health departments inside the hospital, and if necessary, to a psychiatrist, psychologist or general practitioner (GP) out in the community. * If the patient presents risk behaviors, the team will refer to substance abuse services and links to community services in order to maintain continuity of care. * In case of somatic problems, the team will find a new GP or make contact with the previous provider, contingent on the patient's consent.

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • University of Lausanne

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • Bodenmann Patrick, PD, MER, MSc · University of Lausanne

Study Design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
SUPPORTIVE_CARE
Masking
SINGLE
Model
PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age
18 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2012-06-30
Primary Completion
2014-07-31
Completion
2014-07-31

Countries

  • Switzerland

Study Locations

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Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT01934322 on ClinicalTrials.gov