Abstract
Objective
To investigate the Australian general public’s ability to identify common medical
emergencies as requiring an emergency response.
Methods
An online survey asked participants to identify likely medical treatment pathways
they would take for 17 hypothetical medical scenarios (eight emergency and nine non-emergency).
The number and type of emergency scenarios participants correctly suggested warranted
an emergency medical response was examined. Participants included Australian residents
(aged>18 years; n = 5264) who had never worked as an Australian registered medical
doctor, nurse or paramedic.
Results
Most emergencies were predominately correctly classified as requiring emergency responses
(e.g. Severe chest pain, 95% correct). However, non-emergency medical responses were
often chosen for some emergency scenarios, such as a child suffering from a scalp
haematoma (67%), potential meningococcal disease (57%), a box jellyfish sting (40%),
a paracetamol overdose (37%), and mild chest pain (26%). Participants identifying
as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander suggested a non-emergency response to emergency
scenarios 29% more often compared with non-indigenous participants.
Conclusions
Educational interventions targeting specific medical symptoms may work to alleviate
delayed emergency medical intervention. This research highlights a particular need
for improving symptom identification and healthcare system confidence amongst Aboriginal
and Torres Strait Islander populations.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: May 04, 2022
Accepted:
April 26,
2022
Received in revised form:
April 20,
2022
Received:
February 14,
2022
Identification
Copyright
© 2022 College of Emergency Nursing Australasia. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
