Table 2.
Demographic, process mapping, and outcome variables
| Variables studied | Total N = 246 | |
|---|---|---|
| Female gender | 128 (52) | |
| Age (years) | 70.5 (60–80) | |
| Body Mass Index | 25 (21–28) | |
| ASA scorea prior to the acute illness | ASA 1 | 20 (8) |
| ASA 2 | 44 (18) | |
| ASA 3 | 164 (67) | |
| ASA 4 | 18 (7) | |
| Charlson Comorbidity Indexb | 2 (1–3) | |
| Present tobacco smoker | 59 (24) | |
| Previous tobacco smoker | 102 (41) | |
| Never smoker | 83 (35) | |
| Present smokers: Cigarettes/day | 15 (10–20) | |
| Admitted from | Home | 218 (89) |
| Residential care home | 12 (4) | |
| Nursing home | 13 (5) | |
| Other hospital | 3 (1) | |
| Arrived by ambulance | 141 (58) | |
| Time of arrival | 12 (10 am–2 pm) | |
| ED triage levelc | Critial Care Team | 18 (8) |
| Met by ED physician | 21 (9) | |
| MTS 2 | 131 (55) | |
| MTS 3 | 53 (23) | |
| MTS 4 | 14 (6) | |
| Time from arrival to | NEWSd scoring 1 | 0:08 (0:03–0:20) |
| NEWS scoring 2 | 2:45 (2:24–3:24) | |
| NEWS scoring 3 | 23:35 (20:40–25:43) | |
| NEWS on 1st scoring | (n = 246) | 5 (3–7) |
| NEWS on 2nd scoring | (n = 174) | 5 (3–7) |
| NEWS on 3rd scoring | (n = 201) | 5 (3–7) |
| Length of hospital stay (days) | 4 (2–7) | |
| Maximum level of care | ICU | 4 (2) |
| Medical ICU | 19 (8) | |
| Cardiac HDU | 15 (6) | |
| General ward | 177 (72) | |
| ED | 31 (13) | |
| Mechanical ventilatory support | Intubated | 4 (2) |
| NIV or BiPAP | 20 (8) | |
| CPAP | 7 (3) | |
| None | 216 (88) | |
| Discharged to | Home | 181 (74) |
| Nursing home | 38 (15) | |
| Rehabilitation facility | 2 (1) | |
| Other hospital | 9 (4) | |
| Dead | 16 (7) | |
| Discharged alive | 230 (93) | |
| Alive 30 d after ED arrival | 224 (91) | |
| Alive 90 d after ED arrival | 204 (83) | |
| Alive 90 d after ED arrival | MTS 1 | 25/39 (64) |
| MTS ≥2 | 179/207 (86) | |
| Treated in ICUs or HDU | 27/38 (71) | |
| Treated in ward or ED | 177/208 (85) | |
Numbers are n (%) or median (25–75th percentile). Time is given as hours:minutes. a ASA American Society of Anesthesiologists Physical Status score prior to this acute incident. bCharlson Comorbidity Index with updated weights. c MTS Manchester triage scale. d NEWS National Early Warning Score, ICU intensive care unit, HDU high dependency unit, ED emergency department, NIV non-invasive venitlation, BiPAP Bi-level positive airway pressure, CPAP continuous positive airway pressure