Missed Opportunities: Evolution of Patients Leaving without Being Seen or against Medical Advice during a Six-Year Period in a Swiss Tertiary Hospital Emergency Department
Table 1
Left without being seen (LWBS) patients.
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
Patients at triage ()
47 974
50 384
48 562
51 557
55 276
53 963
Male/female ratio
1.1
1.1
1.1
1.1
1.1
1.1
Age: mean (range)
48.6 (16–104)
46.1 (16–104)
46.0 (16–106)
45.5 (16–107)
45.1 (16–108)
46.5 (16–109)
LWBS (%)
171 (0.4%)
258 (0.5%)
244 (0.5%)
162 (0.3%)
163 (0.3%)
159 (0.3%)
Male/female ratio
1.3
1.3
1.3
1.3
0.8
1.4
Age: mean (range)
38.1 (17–82)
38.4 (16–95)
38.2 (16–86)
40.2 (16–90)
36.1 (16–86)
39.9 (18–89)
STS level acuity (%):
1
0 (0.0%)
0 (0.0%)
1* (0.4%)
0 (0.0%)
0 (0.0%)
0 (0.0%)
2
9 (5.3%)
11 (4.2%)
13 (5.3%)
8 (4.9%)
15 (9.2%)
15 (9.4%)
3 or more
161 (94.1%)
230 (88.8%)
200 (81.9%)
143 (88.3%)
147 (90.1%)
144 (90.6%)
Missing values
1 (0.6%)
17 (6.5%)
30 (12.3%)
11 (6.8%)
1 (0.6%)
0 (0.0%)
Complaints (%)
Traumatology/orthopaedic
84 (49.1)
115 (44.6)
106 (43.4)
51 (31.5)
40 (24.5)
24 (15.1)
Abdominal pain/digestive
14 (8.2)
33 (12.7)
30 (12.3)
29 (17.9)
26 (15.9)
26 (16.4)
ENT
14 (8.2)
17 (6.6)
19 (7.8)
24 (14.8)
14 (8.5)
19 (11.9)
Neurology/neurosurgery
8 (4.7)
19 (7.3)
16 (6.6)
7 (4.3)
17 (10.4)
16 (10.0)
Pulmonary
6 (3.5)
16 (6.2)
8 (3.8)
4 (2.5)
6 (3.7)
6 (3.8)
Cardiovascular
8 (4.7)
10 (3.8)
12 (4.9)
6 (3.7)
8 (4.9)
8 (5.0)
Infectious
11 (6.4)
13 (5.0)
7 (2.9)
5 (3.1)
7 (4.3)
4 (2.5)
Urology
11 (6.4)
13 (5.0)
7 (2.9)
6 (3.7)
6 (3.7)
6 (3.8)
Alcohol/toxic
3 (1.7)
5 (1.9)
8 (3.3)
8 (4.9)
5 (3.1)
8 (5.0)
Endocrinology, diabetes
0 (0.0)
0 (0.0)
4 (1.6)
1 (0.6)
0 (0.0)
4 (2.5)
Psychiatry
0 (0.0)
3 (1.2)
2 (0.8)
2 (1.2)
3 (1.8)
0 (0.0)
General
4 (2.3)
4 (1.6)
14 (5.7)
14 (8.6)
11 (6.7)
15 (9.4)
Allergy/dermatology
8 (4.7)
10 (3.8)
7 (2.9)
4 (2.4)
7 (4.3)
8 (5.0)
Wounds
0 (0.0)
0 (0.0)
4 (1.6)
1 (0.6)
13 (7.9)
15 (9.4)
Time before leaving (min)
Median
116
109.5
118
96
82
94
IQR
[69.5–158]
[65.0–162.8]
[72.5–175.0]
[56.3–148.5]
[45.5–130.5]
[63.0–145.0]
STS: Swiss triage scale, LWBS: left without being seen, ENT: ear-nose-throat, and IQR: interquartile range.
*One case of transient ischemic stroke, with spontaneous complete recovery.
