Dataset Information

First Nations status and emergency department triage scores in Alberta: a retrospective cohort study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Previous studies have found that race is associated with emergency department triage scores, raising concerns about potential health care inequity. As part of a project on quality of care for First Nations people in Alberta, we sought to understand the relation between First Nations status and triage scores.

Methods

We conducted a population-based retrospective cohort study of health administrative data from April 2012 to March 2017 to evaluate acuity of triage scores, categorized as a binary outcome of higher or lower acuity score. We developed multivariable multilevel logistic mixed-effects regression models using the levels of emergency department visit, patient (for patients with multiple visits) and facility. We further evaluated the triage of visits related to 5 disease categories and 5 specific diagnoses to better compare triage outcomes of First Nations and non-First Nations patients.

Results

First Nations status was associated with lower odds of receiving higher acuity triage scores (odds ratio [OR] 0.93, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.92-0.94) compared with non-First Nations patients in adjusted models. First Nations patients had lower odds of acute triage for all 5 disease categories and for 3 of 5 diagnoses, including long bone fractures (OR 0.82, 95% CI 0.76-0.88), acute upper respiratory infection (OR 0.90, 95% CI 0.84-0.98) and anxiety disorder (OR 0.67, 95% CI 0.60-0.74).

Interpretation

First Nations status was associated with lower odds of higher acuity triage scores across a number of conditions and diagnoses. This may reflect systemic racism, stereotyping and potentially other factors that affected triage assessments.

SUBMITTER: McLane P

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8900783 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

First Nations status and emergency department triage scores in Alberta: a retrospective cohort study.

McLane Patrick P Barnabe Cheryl C Mackey Leslee L Bill Lea L Rittenbach Katherine K Holroyd Brian R BR Bird Anne A Healy Bonnie B Janvier Kris K Louis Eunice E Rosychuk Rhonda J RJ

CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association journal = journal de l'Association medicale canadienne 20220101 2

<h4>Background</h4>Previous studies have found that race is associated with emergency department triage scores, raising concerns about potential health care inequity. As part of a project on quality of care for First Nations people in Alberta, we sought to understand the relation between First Nations status and triage scores.<h4>Methods</h4>We conducted a population-based retrospective cohort study of health administrative data from April 2012 to March 2017 to evaluate acuity of triage scores, ...[more]

PMID: 35039386

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Dataset Information

First Nations status and emergency department triage scores in Alberta: a retrospective cohort study.

Background

Methods

Results

Interpretation

Publications

First Nations status and emergency department triage scores in Alberta: a retrospective cohort study.

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