Making choices: why parents present to the emergency department for non-urgent care.
OBJECTIVE
This study aims to provide a better understanding of the motivations and actions of parents of children with non-urgent injury or illness who attend the emergency department at a tertiary paediatric hospital seeking care.


METHODS
A prospective questionnaire-based survey of 355 parents aimed to ascertain information about parent care-giving and care-seeking behaviours prior to presentation at the emergency department with their child.


RESULTS
A total of 355 parents were surveyed, representing 8% of the parents/carers presenting to the emergency department in a 3-month period for non-urgent (Australasian Triage System 4 and 5) care of their child. The factors identified were: parents rated their child's condition as moderate to very serious (242 (68%)); two-thirds of parents (234 (66%)) had sought advice prior to attending the emergency department; 54% (77) of the 137 children who attended with an injury presented promptly to emergency (ie, within 4 h of injury) whereas of the 216 presenting with an illness, 41% (88) presented within 2-7 days of the onset of the illness.


CONCLUSIONS
This study displayed the accuracy of "parental triage," that is, parents assess their child's health and generally engage in appropriate care-giving and care-seeking behaviours before presenting to a paediatric emergency department. Highlighted are the deficiencies in current primary care services available to families and the perception that not all cases deemed as non-urgent by the emergency department are able to be dealt with in a primary care setting.
Williams
A
A
Nursing Research Unit, Royal Children's Hospital, Queensland, Australia. alison_williams@health.qld.gov.au
O'Rourke
P
P
Keogh
S
S
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002755:Choice Behavior; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004522:Educational Status; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D011793:Queensland; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D055815:Young Adult