Characteristics and outcomes of critically ill Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander patients in North Queensland.
A retrospective cohort analysis of an admission database for the intensive care unit at The Townsville Hospital was undertaken to describe the characteristics and short-term outcomes of critically ill Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients. The Townsville Hospital is the tertiary referral centre for Northern Queensland and services a region in which Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people constitute 9.6% of the population. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients were significantly younger and had higher rates of invasive mechanical ventilation, emergency admissions and transfers from another hospital. Despite these factors, intensive care mortality did not differ between groups (9.4% versus 7.7%, P=0.1). Higher Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation III-j scores were noted in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population requiring emergency admission (65 versus 60, P=0.022) but were lower for elective admission (38 versus 42, P <0.001). Despite higher predicted hospital mortality for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients requiring emergency admission, no significant difference was observed (20.1% versus 19.1%, P=0.656). In a severity adjusted model, Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander status did not statistically significantly alter the risk of death (odds ratio 0.88, 95% confidence interval 0.65, 1.2, P=0.398). Though Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients requiring intensive care differed in admission characteristics, mortality was comparable to other critically ill patients.
Intensive Care Unit, Townsville Hospital, Townsville, Queensland.
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Trout
Intensive Care Unit, Townsville Hospital, Townsville, Queensland.
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Henson
Intensive Care Unit, Townsville Hospital and School of Medicine, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland.
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Senthuran
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003422:Critical Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D016638:Critical Illness; D005260:Female; D006303:Health Services, Indigenous / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017052:Hospital Mortality / Q000208:ethnology*; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010360:Patient Transfer / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011793:Queensland; D012121:Respiration, Artificial / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D062606:Tertiary Care Centers / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D055815:Young Adult
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mortality; Indigenous health; critical care