TRAUMATIC AND NON-TRAUMATIC MORTALITY IN THE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT

Background: The mortality rate in an emergency department is an efficient tool to appraise the quality of healthcare provided by this department. Objective: The main objective of this study was to estimate the mortality rate in the emergency department (ED) at King Faisal Medical Complex in Taif, Saudi Arabia, and to also determine the most common causes of death and the profiles of patients who die in the ED. Methods: This was a retrospective study conducted in (392,862) consecutive patients who were admitted to the ED during the period between June 1st, 2016 and February 28th, 2018. Data were analyzed using SPSS 2012, version 21. Results: Out of 392,862 admitted patients, 194 (0.049%) died in the emergency room. The majority of these deaths were non-traumatic (88.1%). The most common causes of non-traumatic death were heart disease other than coronary artery disease (50.0%) and sudden death of unknown cause (33.0%). While traumatic deaths (11.9%) were predominantly caused by motor vehicle accidents (10.4%) and gun shoot wounds or falling down (1.5%). Higher rates of traumatic death were reported among males (p=0.038) and younger patients (p<0.001). Conclusion: Our study reveals the emergency department in King Faisal Medical Complex has a relatively low mortality rate that indicates a high level of medical care quality in the department.