Table 2.
Demographic and observation data regarding admissions in each of the four study periods.
| CONTROL 2018 (a) | CONTROL 2019 (b) | CONTROL 2020 | COVID-19 era (c) | p-value | post-hoc tests (p-value < 0.05) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Days in period | 45 | 45 | 76 | 45 | ||
| Admissions, N | 5916 | 6171 | 10,242 | 4375 | ||
| Admissions to medical specialties, N (%) | 3871 (65.4 %) | 3961 (64.2 %) | 6793 (66.3%) | 3299 (75.4%) | ||
| Admissions to surgical specialties, N (%) | 1723 (29.1%) | 1835 (29.7%) | 2849 (27.8%) | 994 (22.7 %) | ||
| Admissions to other specialties, N (%) | 322 (5.4%) | 375 (6.1%) | 600 (5.9%) | 82 (1.9%) | ||
| Admissions per day, N | 131 | 137 | 135 | 97 | ||
| Admissions to medical specialties per day, N | 86 | 88 | 89 | 73 | ||
| Admissions to surgical specialties per day, N | 38 | 41 | 37 | 22 | ||
| Admissions to other specialties per day, N | 7 | 8 | 8 | 2 | ||
| Female, N (%) | 3130 (52.9%) | 3261 (52.8%) | 5445 (53.2%) | 2214 (50.6%) | 0.011 | |
| Age [years], median (IQR) | 67.2 (19.5) | 67.7 (19.5) | 67.7 (19.7) | 68.4 (19.1) | 0.004 | (c) different from (b) |
| Admission observations | ||||||
| Admission HR [bpm], mean (SD) | 80.9 (16.7) | 80.7 (16.6) | 81.4 (16.7) | 82 (16.5) | <0.001 | (c) different from (a) & (b) |
| Admission RR [1/min], mean (SD) | 17.4 (2.9) | 17.6 (2.9) | 17.9 (2.9) | 18 (2.9) | <0.001 | all different from each other |
| Admission temperature [oC], mean (SD) | 36.8 (0.5) | 36.8 (0.5) | 36.7 (0.5) | 36.8 (0.6) | 0.938 | |
| Admission SpO2 [%], mean (SD) | 96.3 (2.3) | 96.3 (2.3) | 96.2 (2.3) | 96.2 (2.3) | 0.151 | |
| Admission sBP [mmHg], mean (SD) | 130.7 (23.8) | 131 (24.3) | 131.2 (24.3) | 130.8 (23.7) | 0.711 | |
| Admission supplemental O2, N (%) | 1044 (17.6%) | 1011 (16.4%) | 1844 (18.0%) | 811 (18.5 %) | 0.015 | (c) different from (b) |
| Admission AVPU | ||||||
| Alert, N (%) | 138,256 (99.2%) | 153,602 (99.3%) | 280,666 (99.6%) | 95,329 (99.2%) | 0.042 | |
| Responds to voice, N (%) | 704 (0.5%) | 632 (0.4%) | 652 (0.2%) | 462 (0.5%) | 0.150 | |
| Responds to pain, N (%) | 201 (0.1%) | 151 (0.1%) | 245 (0.1%) | 131 (0.1%) | 0.037 | (c) different from (b) |
| Unresponsive, N (%) | 124 (0.1%) | 85 (0.1%) | 111 (0%) | 53 (0.1%) | 0.046 | |
| Admission EWS value, mean (SD) | 1.6 (1.9) | 1.6 (1.9) | 1.7 (1.9) | 1.7 (2) | 0.001 | (c) different from (a) & (b) |
| All observations during stay | ||||||
| No of observations, N | 139,318 | 154,679 | 281,828 | 96,059 | ||
| Observation sets / day, median (IQR) | 3.9 (3−5) | 4 (3.2−5) | 4.2 (3.6−5) | 4.5 (3.8−5.8) | <0.001 | all different from each other |
| HR [bpm], mean (SD) | 80.2 (15.6) | 80.3 (15.4) | 79.9 (15.3) | 80.7 (15.1) | <0.001 | (c) different from (a) & (b) |
| RR [1/min], mean (SD) | 17.3 (2.8) | 17.5 (2.8) | 17.7 (2.7) | 18.1 (3.1) | <0.001 | all different from each other |
| Temperature [oC], mean (SD) | 36.8 (0.5) | 36.7 (0.4) | 36.7 (0.5) | 36.8 (0.5) | <0.001 | all different from each other |
| SpO2 [%], mean (SD) | 96.1 (2.3) | 96.1 (2.3) | 95.9 (2.3) | 95.8 (2.4) | <0.001 | (c) different from (a) & (b) |
| sBP [mmHg], mean (SD) | 126.1 (22.7) | 126.2 (22.2) | 126.5 (22.1) | 126.8 (21.9) | <0.001 | (c) different from (a) & (b) |
| Supplemental O2, N (%) | 24,595 (18%) | 26,468 (17%) | 53,166 (19%) | 23,857 (25%) | <0.001 | all different from each other |
| AVPU | ||||||
| Alert, N (%) | 138,256 (99.2%) | 153,602 (99.3%) | 280,666 (99.6%) | 95,329 (99.2%) | 0.061 | |
| Responds to voice, N (%) | 704 (0.5%) | 632 (0.4%) | 652 (0.2%) | 462 (0.5%) | 0.001 | (a) different from (b) |
| Responds to pain, N (%) | 201 (0.1%) | 151 (0.1%) | 245 (0.1%) | 131 (0.1%) | 0.001 | (a) different from (b) |
| Unresponsive, N (%) | 124 (0.1%) | 85 (0.1%) | 111 (0%) | 53 (0.1%) | 0.001 | (a) different from (b) |
| EWS value, mean (SD) | 1.7 (2) | 1.6 (1.9) | 1.7 (1.9) | 1.9 (2.1) | <0.001 | all different from each other |
| Outcomes | ||||||
| Length of stay [days], median (IQR) | 4 (2-12) | 4 (2−12) | 4 (2−10) | 3 (1−8) | <0.001 | all different from each other |
| ICU admission within 24 h, N (%) | 83 (1.4%) | 92 (1.5%) | 128 (1.2%) | 86 (2.0%) | 0.070 | |
| Death within 24 h, N (%) | 151 (2.6%) | 146 (2.4%) | 254 (2.5%) | 183 (4.2%) | <0.001 | (c) different from (a) & (b) |
| In-hospital deaths, N (%) | 294 (5%) | 286 (4.6%) | 530 (5.2%) | 323 (7.4%) | <0.001 | (c) different from (a) & (b) |
HR = heart/pulse rate; RR = respiratory rate; sBP = systolic blood pressure SpO2 = peripheral oxygen saturation; EWS, Early Warning Score.
Count data has been tested for significance using Fisher's exact test and Bonferroni correction for pairwise comparison.
Proportions were compared using the chi squared test (Bonferroni correction).
Mean values were compared with one-way ANOVA and Scheffe’s test.
Median values were compared using Kruskal-Wallis and Dunn's test (Bonferroni correction).