For the first time in five years, pneumonia was among the top 10 causes of emergency room visits in Canada last year.
OTTAWA, Nov. 29, 2018 /CNW/ – According to the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI), nearly 135,000 emergency department visits were related to pneumonia in 2017-2018, a 13% increase compared to the previous year . More than one in four reported emergency visits related to pneumonia resulted in hospitalization for at least one night.
The three most common reasons for emergency room visits were pelvic pain, sore throat and chest pain, and acute upper respiratory tract infections, which together resulted in about one million reported emergency department visits last year.
Pneumonia, a problem that affects not just a hospital emergency department but the entire facility, is consistently one of the leading causes of hospital death. Last year, about 65% of people hospitalized with pneumonia were elderly.
“Pneumonia is a serious illness that is a constant concern for emergency department staff,” says Greg Webster, director of acute and ambulatory care information services at CIHI. “As cold weather approaches, this new data reminds all Canadians of the importance of protecting themselves from pneumonia. Hygiene precautions, vaccinations and following the recommendations of our health authorities are particularly important this time of year. »
Still, the number of emergency room visits in Canada continues to rise, according to CIHI data. More than 11.4 million emergency room visits were reported in 2017-2018, compared to 11.2 million in 2016-2017. Despite this increase in the number of emergency department visits, waiting times remain relatively stable over 12 months, with waiting times being longer in the evenings and weekends and varying between hospitals.
CIHI’s Quick Stats and Your Health System web tools are good sources of data for emergency room visits. CIHI today released last year’s data for 28 health indicators, including all hospital readmissions and preventable deaths, into your health system. Their health system tool presents facility-level data on long-term care, hospital deaths, hospital readmissions, and more. There is also a list of indicators and contextual measures updated with new data.
Publication Health Index: November 29, 2018 – Number of visits since publication: 30813
Read more about the health index:
Total web buff. Student. Tv enthusiast. Evil thinker. Travelaholic. Proud bacon guru.
