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The Rationale for Developing Public Health Surveillance Systems Based on Emergency Department Data
Author(s) -
Hirshon Jon Mark
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
academic emergency medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.221
H-Index - 124
eISSN - 1553-2712
pISSN - 1069-6563
DOI - 10.1111/j.1553-2712.2000.tb00503.x
Subject(s) - medicine , public health , medical emergency , psychological intervention , emergency department , public health surveillance , public health interventions , nursing
. Emergency departments (EDs) are well positioned to provide national data on several aspects of public health. The large volume of patients seen annually, improving medical record technology, and emergency uniform data sets make the development of public health surveillance systems a realistic opportunity for emergency medicine. Such data could identify public health concerns and suggest interventions to improve the health of the nation. This article describes current concepts and status of ED surveillance systems, their advantages and disadvantages, the rationale for their existence, and recommendations to allow their continued consideration and development.