First four years of operation of a municipal acute bed unit in rural Norway

Figures & data

Table 1. Admissions to municipal emergency beds (n = 389).

			Length of stay
Admission year	n	%	Mean	SD
2013	81	20.8	2.4	0.9
2014	85	21.9	2.7	1.2
2015	108	27.8	3.0	1.3
2016	115	29.6	2.8	1.3
Admission time
Work day, day 8:00 AM – 3.30 PM	144	37.0
Work day, evening 3.30 PM – 11:00 PM	137	35.2
Work day, night 11:00 PM – 8:00 AM	35	9.0
Weekend/Public holiday	73	18.8
Referring doctor
Doctor at out-of-hours service	329	84.6
General practitioner	44	11.3
Others (hospital doctor, home nurse)	16	4.1

Table 2. Patient characteristics of first time admission by age group, and all admissions to a municipal acute bed unit in the period 2013–16.

	First time admission (n = 215)
	Age <74 y		Age ≥75 y		All admissions (n = 389)
	n	%	n	%	N	%
Sex
Male	26	51.1	94	57.3	194	50.1
Female	25	49.0	70	42.7	195	49.9
					Mean	SD
Age, years					80.8	13.3
Diagnostic group on admission	n	%	n	%	n	%
Infection	15	9.4	54	32.7	109	28.0
Observation	18	35.3	35	21.3	86	22.1
Musculoskeletal	<5		34	20.7	63	16.2
Dehydration	<5		14	8.5	36	9.3
Heart failure	<5		9	5.5	30	7.7
Mental disorder	<5		5	3.0	28	7.2
COPD	<5		8	4.9	17	4.4
Constipation	<5		<5		8	2.1
Social	<5		<5		<5
Diabetes	<5		<5		<5
Addiction	<5		<5		<5
	Mean	SD	Mean	SD	Mean	SD
Length of stay in MAU	2.0	1.1	2.7	1.1	2.8	1.2
MEWS^a, maximum score	1.2	1.3	1.7	1.5	1.7	1.6
ADL^b score on admission	2.0	0.9	2.4	0.8	2.5	0.8
ADL^b score on discharge	1.8	0.8	2.3	0.9	2.3	0.85
Number of pre-existing comorbidities	1.35	1.07	1.76	0.85	1.8	0.9
Pre-existing comorbidities	n	%	n	%	n	%
Cardiovascular	22	43.1	134	81.7	292	75.1
Dementia	<5		36	22.0	83	21.3
Diabetes	10	19.6	34	20.7	80	20.6
Mental disorders	11	21.6	20	12.2	70	18.0
COPD	7	13.7	24	14.7	60	15.4
Cancer	8	15.7	24	14.7	59	15.2
Neurological conditions	5	9.8	16	9.8	55	14.1
Addiction	<5		<5		<5

^aMEWS: modified early warning score;

^bADL: activities of daily living.

Table 3. Diagnostic and therapeutic procedures during stay in municipal emergency beds (n = 389).

	n	%
Diagnostic procedures
Blood samples (hemoglobin, CRP, leucocytes, glucose)	378	97.2
Urine samples	212	54.6
ECG	179	46.0
Samples transferred to hospital lab	36	9.3
Glucose profile	23	5.9
Troponin	7	1.8
Observation commotion	6	1.5
INR	5	1.3
Bladder volume	<5
D-dimer	<5
No diagnostic initiatives	8	2.1
Supplementary diagnostics
X-ray at hospital	15	3.9
Consultation hospital specialist (by phone)	59	15.2
Treatments and procedures
Antibiotics total	112	28.8
Antibiotics intravenous	62	15.9
Other medication adjustments	85	21.9
Pain management	82	21.1
Mobilisation	51	13.1
Intravenous fluid	49	12.6
CPAP	28	7.2
Inhalation therapy	24	6.2
Isolation for infection/Shielding	<5
Oxygen therapy	11	2.8
Bowel emptying	9	2.3
Catheterization	8	2.1
Wound care	7	1.8
No therapeutic initiative	102	26.2

Figure 1. Annual admission rates (per 1000) to medical ward at hospital (acute admissions)** from municipality, county and Norway respectively, and to municipal emergency bed unit (MAU).

*Based on the two first tertials; ** Hospital admissions from year 2010 are included to show time trends.