Heart attack care better during daytime
April 22, 2008
Off-Peak hospital hours associated with delays for crucial medical procedures. Heart attack patients who arrive at the hospital during regular business hours get the fastest, most comprehensive care compared to those who come during off-peak times. Yet, a new study shows the difference does not seem to influence in-hospital death rates.
Previous studies regarding hospital arrival time and heart attack care and outcomes have shown mixed results. Medical care and in-hospital death rates for 62,814 heart attack patients. The patients were admitted between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. weekdays or during off-hours, which included weekday overnights, weekends, and holidays.The goal of [emergency angioplasty] is to open the artery as soon as possible and preferably within 90 minutes of the patient arriving at the emergency room.
The researchers learned that, on average, those who came to the hospital during regular business hours received emergency angioplasty within a median of 85 minutes; those who arrived during off-hours waited a median of 110 minutes for the procedure.
Patients who arrived during off-hours were 66% less likely to have emergency angioplasty within the 90-minute window recommended. This represents a vital opportunity for physicians to improve care, and is particularly important from a public health standpoint Our findings should compel healthcare providers and policy makers to work toward reducing the existing disparities in cardiac care with respect to arrival time, and improve healthcare delivery at all times through multifaceted initiatives aiming to improve the timely delivery of evidence-based therapies.
Despite the differences, researchers reported similar death rates for both groups of patients, regardless of sex and age. Researchers say future studies are needed to further examine the role between arrival time and a patient's care and outcome.
Source: webmd.com
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