Getting to the Heart of the Matter: A Triage Model to Improve Utilization of Cardiology Consultative Services

Abstract

Objective: To assess the impact of a triage system of emergency department (ED) referrals for outpatient cardiology appointments. Patient and Methods: We implemented a triage system of ED referrals for outpatient cardiology appointments among patients with a cardiovascular chief complaint deemed safe to leave the ED but needing outpatient follow-up. There were 303 and 267 unique patients in the preetriage implementation and postetriage implementation cohorts, respectively. We collected retrospective billing data to assess ED return visits, hospitalizations, cardiology outpatient visits, and cardiovascular testing. The preetriage implementation cohort included patients with an ED visit date between