Table 2.
General characteristics of patients' comparison by ambulance use group, n (%).
| Appropriate EMS usage | Appropriate no EMS usage | Underuse | Overuse | p | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KTAS (1, 2, 3) and ambulance | KTAS (4, 5) and no ambulance | KTAS (1, 2, 3) and no ambulance | KTAS (4, 5) and ambulance | ||
| 2,408,875 (13.16) | 9,259,706 (50.6) | 5,147,352 (28.13) | 1,482,602 (8.10) | ||
| Age mean ± S.D | 58.20 ± 22.87 | 39.60 ± 26.89 | 34.15 ± 23.90 | 39.60 ± 26.89 | p < 0.0001 |
| Male (%) | 53.81 | 49.83 | 51.28 | 49.83 | p < 0.0001 |
|
| |||||
| Disposition | p < 0.0001 | ||||
| Discharge | 1,047,286 (7.41%) | 8,329,024 (58.95%) | 3,638,366 (25.75%) | 1,114,266 (7.89%) | |
| Transfer out | 124,558 (43.77%) | 46,651 (16.39%) | 76,138 (26.75%) | 37,240 (13.09%) | |
| Admission | 1,143,853 (30.74%) | 849,406 (22.83%) | 1,407,848 (37.84%) | 319,687 (8.59%) | |
| Death | 86,919 (87.41%) | 461 (0.46%) | 11,132 (11.20%) | 922 (0.93%) | |
| None | 6,259 (9.66%) | 34,164 (52.74%) | 13,868 (21.41%) | 10,487 (16.19%) | |
|
| |||||
| Insurance type | p < 0.0001 | ||||
| Public | 1,952,420 (12.12%) | 8,334,443 (51.73%) | 4,763,491 (29.57%) | 1,061,109 (6.59%) | |
| Automobile | 118,930 (16.53%) | 335,009 (46.55%) | 62,799 (8.73%) | 202,931 (28.20%) | |
| Industrial injury | 9,539 (21.81%) | 22,486 (51.41%) | 7,282 (16.65%) | 4,433 (10.13%) | |
| Private | 5 (10.42%) | 22 (45.83%) | 17 (35.42%) | 4 (8.33%) | |
| Medical care type 1 | 231,391 (27.51%) | 280,350 (33.33%) | 192,303 (22.86%) | 137,025 (16.29%) | |
| Medical care type 2 | 26,265 (15.44%) | 82,748 (48.64%) | 39,595 (23.27%) | 21,515 (12.65%) | |
| Self-pay | 56,839 (18.62%) | 147,984 (48.49%) | 56,179 (18.41%) | 44,213 (14.49%) | |
| Others | 11,047 (13.35%) | 41,938 (50.68%) | 20,062 (24.24%) | 9,705 (11.73%) | |
| Unknown | 2,439 (9.97%) | 14,726 (60.21%) | 5,624 (23.00%) | 1,667 (6.82%) | |
|
| |||||
| Disease or injury | p < 0.0001 | ||||
| Disease | 1,882,159 (14.43%) | 5,935,077 (45.51%) | 4,536,214 (34.78%) | 689,162 (5.28%) | |
| Injury | 509,152 (10.12%) | 3,183,726 (63.29%) | 562,849 (11.19%) | 774,762 (15.40%) | |
| Unknown | 17,564 (7.79%) | 140,903 (62.50%) | 48,289 (21.42%) | 18,678 (8.29%) | |
|
| |||||
| Route of arrival | p < 0.0001 | ||||
| Direct | 1,853,679 (11.41%) | 8,696,332 (53.53%) | 4,335,211 (26.69%) | 1,360,492 (8.37%) | |
| Transfer in | 552,549 (31.92%) | 431,373 (24.92%) | 626,772 (36.20%) | 120,542 (6.96%) | |
| Referral from outpatient | 1,618 (0.54%) | 118,864 (39.65%) | 178,317 (59.48%) | 970 (0.32%) | |
| Others | 825 (18.72%) | 1,709 (38.77%) | 1,422 (32.26%) | 452 (10.25%) | |
| Unknown | 204 (1.17%) | 11,428 (65.65%) | 5,630 (32.34%) | 146 (0.84%) | |
|
| |||||
| Mode of transport | p < 0.0001 | ||||
| Public EMS | 1,828,405 (57.80%) | 0 | 0 | 1,334,809 (42.2%) | |
| Other hospital ambulances | 142,140 (77.28%) | 0 | 0 | 41,789 (22.72%) | |
| Private ambulance service | 438,330 (80.53%) | 0 | 0 | 106,004 (19.47%) | |
| Public transportation (e.g., police car) | 0 | 11,943 (62.83%) | 7,066 (37.17%) | 0 | |
| Aeromedical transport | 0 | 4,834 (36.56%) | 8,387 (63.44%) | 0 | |
| Other cars | 0 | 9,112,394 (64.31%) | 5,056,599 (35.69%) | 0 | |
| Walk-in | 0 | 106,108 (65.81%) | 55,117 (34.19%) | 0 | |
| Others | 0 | 12,534 (47.32%) | 13,956 (52.68%) | 0 | |
| Unknown | 0 | 11,893 (65.63%) | 6,227 (34.37%) | 0 | |
|
| |||||
| Type of emergency medical centers | p < 0.0001 | ||||
| Regional centers | 890,035 (16.74%) | 2,275,717 (42.81%) | 1,787,642 (33.63%) | 362,725 (6.82%) | |
| Local centers | 1,426,363 (12.35%) | 6,050,092 (52.40%) | 3,074,910 (26.63%) | 994,295 (8.61%) | |
| Local institutions | 92,477 (6.44%) | 933,897 (65.00%) | 284,800 (19.82%) | 125,582 (8.74%) | |
|
| |||||
| Initial triage level | p < 0.0001 | ||||
| 1 | 166,114 (84.69%) | 0 | 30,030 (15.31%) | 0 | |
| 2 | 549,418 (51.93%) | 0 | 508,539 (48.07%) | 0 | |
| 3 | 1,693,343 (26.87%) | 0 | 4,608,783 (73.13%) | 0 | |
| 4 | 0 | 7,347,225 (85.02%) | 0 | 1,294,064 (14.98%) | |
| 5 | 0 | 1,912,481 (91.03%) | 0 | 188,538 (8.97%) | |
∗KTAS: Korean Triage and Acuity Scale.