Controlled observational study and economic evaluation of the effect of city-centre night-time alcohol intoxication management services on the emergency care system compared with usual care.

Background: Alcohol intoxication management services (AIMS) provide an alternative care pathway for alcohol-intoxicated adults otherwise requiring emergency department (ED) services and at times of high incidence. We estimate the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of AIMS on ED attendance rates with ED and ambulance service performance indicators as secondary outcomes.

Methods: A controlled longitudinal retrospective observational study in English and Welsh towns, six with AIMS and six without.

The acceptability of alcohol intoxication management services to users: A mixed methods study.

Introduction And Aims: Alcohol Intoxication Management Services (AIMS) provide basic care for intoxication and minor injuries, have been increasingly implemented in urban areas characterised by a large number of premises licensed for the sale and on-site consumption of alcohol, with the goal of reducing alcohol's burden on emergency services, including referrals into hospital emergency departments. The acceptability of new health services to users is a key effectiveness outcome. The aim was to describe patient experiences when attending an AIMS and document the acceptability of AIMS to users.

Why do parents present to the Paediatric Emergency Department with conditions suitable for management in less acute settings? A qualitative study.

Objective: To determine the factors influencing attendance at a Paediatric Emergency Department with conditions suitable for management in less acute settings.

Methods: Semi-structured interviews exploring parental decision-making processes surrounding care-seeking behaviours in urgent situations were undertaken with parents of children allocated to the two lowest triage categories at a type-1 urban Paediatric Emergency Department over two 2-week periods.

Results: All parents expressed a desire to access care from the most appropriate service for their child in unscheduled situations.

Managing alcohol-related attendances in emergency care: can diversion to bespoke services lessen the burden?

Acute alcohol intoxication (AAI) has a long history of burdening emergency care services. Healthcare systems around the world have explored a variety of different services that divert AAI away from EDs to better manage their condition. Little formal evaluation has been undertaken, particularly in the UK where alcohol misuse is one of the highest in the world.

A coproduced patient and public event: An approach to developing and prioritizing ambulance performance measures.

Background: Patient and public involvement (PPI) is recognized as an important component of high-quality health services research. PPI is integral to the Pre-hospital Outcomes for Evidence Based Evaluation (PhOEBE) programme. The PPI event described in detail in this article focusses on the process of involving patients and public representatives in identifying, prioritizing and refining a set of outcome measures that can be used to support ambulance service performance measurement.

Prioritizing novel and existing ambulance performance measures through expert and lay consensus: A three-stage multimethod consensus study.

Background: Current ambulance quality and performance measures, such as response times, do not reflect the wider scope of care that services now provide. Using a three-stage consensus process, we aimed to identify new ways of measuring ambulance service quality and performance that represent service provider and public perspectives.

Design: A multistakeholder consensus event, modified Delphi study, and patient and public consensus workshop.

Patient and public involvement in emergency care research.

Patients participate in emergency care research and are the intended beneficiaries of research findings. The public provide substantial funding for research through taxation and charitable donations. If we do research to benefit patients and the public are funding the research, then patients and the public should be involved in the planning, prioritisation, design, conduct and oversight of research, yet patient and public involvement (or more simply, public involvement, since patients are also members of the public) has only recently developed in emergency care research.

How do patients feel about taking part in clinical trials in emergency care?

Background: There is little in-depth research into how patients feel about emergency medical trials, and what influences these feelings.

Objectives: To investigate patients' feelings on taking part in emergency medical research, particularly trials conducted without prospective consent.

Methods: Seventeen inpatients, all recently admitted with a medical emergency, were interviewed.

The PAndemic INfluenza Triage in the Emergency Department (PAINTED) pilot cohort study.

Background: Research needs to be undertaken rapidly in the event of an influenza pandemic to develop and evaluate triage methods for people presenting to the emergency department with suspected pandemic influenza.

Objectives: We aimed to pilot a research study to be undertaken in a pandemic to identify the most accurate triage method for patients presenting to the emergency department with suspected pandemic influenza. The objectives of the pilot study were to develop a standardised clinical assessment form and secure online database; test both using data from patients with seasonal influenza; seek clinician views on the usability of the form; and obtain all regulatory approvals required for the main study.