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15 MAY 2019

Hospitals' emergency department patients, 2018

The data about emergency medical care of 2018 is published in the Health Statistics and Health Research Database.
The total number of patients who visited the Emergency Department (ED) increased by 4% in 2018 compared to 2017. The increase has occurred both among children as well as adults – 2.5% and 4%, respectively. In 2018, 492,312 persons turned to ED, i.e. an average of 1,350 persons a day.
In 2018, 19 hospitals provided emergency medical care. The number of emergency patients increased the most in general hospitals, by 8.5% compared to the previous year. In regional and central hospitals, the increase was smaller – 2.5% and 3%, respectively.

As in the previous years, patients turned to ED mostly themselves (73% of patients). One fifth of patients were brought to emergency care by ambulance car, 6% were referred from other medical institutions. The rest, about 2% of patients, were brought by the police, called back by ED if, for example, the patient's health condition had worsened, or a recurring procedure was needed, or hospital's own healthcare staff needed emergency care. The number of patients directed from other medical institutions or arrived in other ways decreased.

Most patients of emergency care were sent home after first aid (81%) and one fifth of patients remained in hospital.

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