Perceived Emergency Department Care and Disease Status in Pediatric Sickle Cell Patients

Abstract

The present study described the overall emergency department (ED) experiences of children with SCD, and examined the relationship between characteristics of care (waiting time, communication/interaction with the health care provider, pain management, speed of care), patient characteristics, disease severity (SCD type) and parent reported satisfaction with care. Guardians of children with SCD (n=125; aged 0 to 17 years) completed a survey concerning their children's ED experiences in the past 6 months. This included information concerning ED wait times, quality of the communication/interaction with the ED doctor, pain management, and their perception concerning speed of care. Almost half (42%) of the guardians reported that their child had been to the ED in the past 6 months. Also, guardians tended to report moderate overall satisfaction with their child's ED care. Shorter ED wait times and higher ratings of speed of care were significant predictors of higher patient satisfaction among guardians of pediatric SCD patients. In conclusion further efforts are needed to develop strategies that will reduce wait time and increase the rate at which patients' needs are met in the ED and that will lead to the production of more effective care for this population. Reduction of wait times and increasing the speed of care may be aided by supplying ED providers with continued education concerning the urgency of SCD emergencies and systematic programming to decrease ED wait times, as well as by educating guardians regarding the importance of going to the ED when serious symptoms first arise and about realistic expectations regarding ED wait times.