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Considerable evidence has been published since the 2020 Korean Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Guidelines were reported. The International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation (ILCOR) also publishes the Consensus on CPR and Emergency Cardiovascular Care Science with Treatment Recommendations (CoSTR) summary annually. This review provides expert opinions by reviewing the recent evidence on CPR and ILCOR treatment recommendations. The authors reviewed the CoSTR summary published by ILCOR in 2021 and 2022. PICO (population, intervention, comparator, outcome) questions for each topic were reviewed using a systemic or scoping review methodology. Two experts were appointed for each question and reviewed the topic independently. Topics suggested by the reviewers for revision or additional description of the guidelines were discussed at a consensus conference. Forty-three questions were reviewed, including 15 on basic life support, seven on advanced life support, two on pediatric life support, 11 on neonatal life support, six on education and teams, one on first aid, and one related to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Finally, the current Korean CPR Guideline was maintained for 28 questions, and expert opinions were suggested for 15 questions.
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Objective@#The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic saw rising cases of out-of-hospital cardiac arrests. In addition, there was an increase in the number of cardiac arrest terminations. This study analyzes the 3-year status (2018 to 2020) of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest resuscitation terminations. @*Methods@#This study is a retrospective observational study based on the diary of 119 first aid activities in the Seoul area. Factors analyzed included patient demographics, history, location of occurrence, witness status, cause of cardiac arrest, electrocardiogram rhythm, reasons for cardiac arrest termination, and hospital transfer. Data obtained from the periods January 1, 2018, to December 31, 2019 (defined as the pre_COVID-19 period) and from January 1, 2020, to December 31, 2020 (defined as the COVID-19 period) were compared and analyzed. @*Results@#There was an increase in the number of terminated resuscitation cases during the study period. Most cases were elderly men with chronic disease who underwent asystole arrest at home. The reasons for the termination of resuscitation were obvious evidence of death, refusal of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) by the guardian, medical guidance, and cessation of prior life-sustaining treatment. During the COVID-19 pandemic, clear evidence of death and refusal of CPR by caregivers were statistically and significantly increased. @*Conclusion@#The results of this study indicate a rise in the number of cases subjected to termination of resuscitation during the COVID-19 period. It is, therefore, necessary to find a way to improve this situation.
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Objective@#Since 2012, the Korean Triage and Acuity Scale (KTAS) has been used to triage patients in an emergency care setting, and the KTAS provider course was started in 2014. However, due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, this course could not be taught to learners face-to-face (FTFL). Therefore, a new KTAS course using synchronous online learning was launched in July 2020. This study investigated whether synchronous online learning (SOL) is as effective as traditional learning (FTFL) for KTAS education. @*Methods@#This was a retrospective study of trainees who participated in the KTAS provider course in Seoul, Korea. The trainees were divided into FTFL and SOL groups. The post-test results of the two training methods were compared, and the association between the type of education and the training results was analyzed. @*Results@#The mean post-test score of the FTFL and SOL groups were 78.16±12.4 points and 80.71±9.91 points, and the post-test pass rates were 79.2% and 82.1%, respectively. The mean difference (MD) between the two groups indicated the non-inferiority of SOL in the post-test scores (MD, 2.55; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.35 to 3.75) and the pass rate (MD, 2.9%; 95% CI, -1.2 to 0.7). The results of the multivariate analysis revealed that the pass rate was associated with younger age and an emergency department career of over 18 months. However, there was no significant association between the education type and the results. @*Conclusion@#Through this study, SOL was shown to be as effective as FTFL in KTAS education. Furthermore, SOL may be the best alternative educational method during the COVID-19 pandemic because it has the advantage of resolving spatial restrictions.
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Objective@#Postdischarge case management for self-harm or suicide attempters often fails; therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effects of mobile messenger counseling (MMC) on the postdischarge case management results among this patient group. @*Methods@#A retrospective analysis was done with data collected from March 2015 to February 2020 that included self-harm or suicide attempters who had visited a Korean emergency department and were discharged. If patients consented, postdischarge case management and MMC were conducted from March 2017. The primary outcome was the rate of successful case management, which reflects the patients either connecting to a local psychiatric healthcare center or undergoing a follow-up at a neuropsychiatric outpatient department at least once following discharge. Using univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses, we evaluated MMC’s effects on these patients’ postdischarge case management. @*Results@#Of 913 patients, 604 participated in this study. In terms of successful case management, the MMC group showed a significantly higher rate than the non-MMC one (28.3% vs. 16.1%, P=0.001). A multivariate analysis demonstrated that access to postdischarge MMC (odds ratio, 2.149; 95% confidence interval, 1.357–3.403; P=0.001) and giving consent for case management while in the emergency department were significantly associated with successful case management (odds ratio, 8.917; 95% confidence interval, 5.610–14.173; P<0.001). @*Conclusion@#The use of MMC for self-harm or suicide attempters is associated with higher case management success rates by increasing their chances of connecting to a psychiatric healthcare center or a neuropsychiatric outpatient department.
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Objective@#Postdischarge case management for self-harm or suicide attempters often fails; therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effects of mobile messenger counseling (MMC) on the postdischarge case management results among this patient group. @*Methods@#A retrospective analysis was done with data collected from March 2015 to February 2020 that included self-harm or suicide attempters who had visited a Korean emergency department and were discharged. If patients consented, postdischarge case management and MMC were conducted from March 2017. The primary outcome was the rate of successful case management, which reflects the patients either connecting to a local psychiatric healthcare center or undergoing a follow-up at a neuropsychiatric outpatient department at least once following discharge. Using univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses, we evaluated MMC’s effects on these patients’ postdischarge case management. @*Results@#Of 913 patients, 604 participated in this study. In terms of successful case management, the MMC group showed a significantly higher rate than the non-MMC one (28.3% vs. 16.1%, P=0.001). A multivariate analysis demonstrated that access to postdischarge MMC (odds ratio, 2.149; 95% confidence interval, 1.357–3.403; P=0.001) and giving consent for case management while in the emergency department were significantly associated with successful case management (odds ratio, 8.917; 95% confidence interval, 5.610–14.173; P<0.001). @*Conclusion@#The use of MMC for self-harm or suicide attempters is associated with higher case management success rates by increasing their chances of connecting to a psychiatric healthcare center or a neuropsychiatric outpatient department.
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Objective@#The incidence of bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest has increased rapidly over the past 10 years. On the other hand, automated external defibrillators (AEDs) are still only used in a minority of cases. This study investigated the feasibility of mobile video call guidance to facilitate AED use for laypeople. @*Methods@#Ninety laypersons were randomized into three groups: mobile video call guided, voice call guided, and nonguided. The participants were exposed to a simulated cardiac arrest requiring AED use and guided by video call, voice call, or not. The simulation experiments were saved as a video clip, and other researchers blinded to simulation assessed the performance according to a prespecified checklist after the simulations. The performance score and analyzed time intervals from AED arrival to defibrillation in the three groups were compared. @*Results@#The basic characteristics were similar in the three groups. Performance scores in the checklist for using AEDs were higher in the mobile video call guided group, particularly in a category of ‘power on AED’ and ‘correctly attaches pads’ than non-guided groups. The performance scores in the category of ‘safely delivers a shock and resume compression’ were also higher in the mobile video call group. On the other hand, the time interval to defibrillation was significantly longer in the mobile video call group. @*Conclusion@#This study showed that mobile video call guidance might be an alternative method for laypeople to facilitate AED use, but further well-designed research will be needed.
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Objective@#Bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation is important for the survival of cardiac arrest patients. The rapid recognition of cardiac arrest by dispatchers leads to quicker initiation of bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation. This study examines the use of video phone by dispatchers in recognizing cardiac arrest. @*Methods@#Between June to October 2018, 227 participants were recruited (114 lay people and 113 dispatchers) for this study. Lay people participants answered prepared questionnaires after watching 6 scenario video clips of a collapsed virtual patient with unresponsiveness. Dispatchers were divided into two groups: audio call group and video call group. The audio call group judged for occurrence of a cardiac arrest in the 6 scenarios, referring only to questionnaires of the lay people. The video call group judged the same scenarios referring to questionnaires and scenario video clips. The score of correct answers of each scenario was subsequently analyzed. @*Results@#Significant difference was obtained for the total score among the audio call group and the video call group (3.67 ±1.3 vs. 4.66±1.11, respectively; P<0.001). In 2 scenarios concerning cardiac arrest with gasping, the correct answer rate was higher in the video call group (63.9% vs. 85.2%, P<0.001; 59.5% vs. 74.8%, P=0.014). In 2 other scenarios showing non-cardiac arrest with normal breathing, the correct answer rate was also higher in the video call group (52.7% vs. 71.4, P=0.010; 38.2% vs. 63.6%, P<0.001). @*Conclusion@#This study determined that compared to the audio call group, dispatchers of the video call group were more accurate in recognizing cardiac arrest. This indicates that video phones are more helpful in determining gasping and in discerning cardiac arrest with syncope or seizure.
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PURPOSE: This study aimed to identify types of quality of life (QoL) based on the 5 dimensions of EQ-5D and predict factors affecting types of QoL. METHODS: This study was a secondary analysis using data from the Korean Health Panel Survey-??2012). Participants were 2,071 middle-aged men who had completed the additional survey in 2012 and the data were analyzed using SPSS 20.0 and Mplus 5.21 for latent analysis. RESULTS: Three latent classes of QoL were identified: serious (2.4% of the sample), threatened (15.5%), and stable types (82.0%). The types and characteristics of QoL among the latent classes differed. On comparing latent type 1 with latent type 2, the socioeconomic status (p < .05), employment status (p < .05), and subjective health status (p < .001) were found to be significant. On comparing latent type 1 with latent type 3, the socioeconomic status (p < .05), current smoking status (p < .001), and subjective health status (p < .001) were found to be significant. On comparing latent type 2 with latent type 3, the socioeconomic status (p < .05), subjective health status (p < .001), stress (p < .001) were found to be significant. CONCLUSION: The results showed significant heterogeneity in types of QoL and the predictors of QoL by types were different. These findings provide basic information for developing nursing interventions to improve QoL. Specific characteristics depending on the subtypes should be considered during the development of interventions.
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PURPOSE@#This study aimed to identify types of quality of life (QoL) based on the 5 dimensions of EQ-5D and predict factors affecting types of QoL.@*METHODS@#This study was a secondary analysis using data from the Korean Health Panel Survey-??2012). Participants were 2,071 middle-aged men who had completed the additional survey in 2012 and the data were analyzed using SPSS 20.0 and Mplus 5.21 for latent analysis.@*RESULTS@#Three latent classes of QoL were identified: serious (2.4% of the sample), threatened (15.5%), and stable types (82.0%). The types and characteristics of QoL among the latent classes differed. On comparing latent type 1 with latent type 2, the socioeconomic status (p < .05), employment status (p < .05), and subjective health status (p < .001) were found to be significant. On comparing latent type 1 with latent type 3, the socioeconomic status (p < .05), current smoking status (p < .001), and subjective health status (p < .001) were found to be significant. On comparing latent type 2 with latent type 3, the socioeconomic status (p < .05), subjective health status (p < .001), stress (p < .001) were found to be significant.@*CONCLUSION@#The results showed significant heterogeneity in types of QoL and the predictors of QoL by types were different. These findings provide basic information for developing nursing interventions to improve QoL. Specific characteristics depending on the subtypes should be considered during the development of interventions.
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OBJECTIVE: Mobile messengers are becoming common methods to communicate among people in various fields. This study investigated the effectiveness of mobile messengers as a tool for post-discharge case management of emergency department patients who attempted suicide and self-harm. METHODS: This study was a retrospective observational study of data collected prospectively. A total of 327 patients who attempted suicide and self-harm in the emergency department were divided into two groups: a conventional protocol group with a face-to-face or phone call interview and a new protocol group with added mobile messenger counseling. The basic characteristics, such as sex, age, methods of suicide and self-harm attempt, consent for case management, and admission to a ward, were surveyed. The rates of successful case management (transfer to a local community center or follow-up to neuropsychiatric outpatient clinic, or both) were compared as a primary outcome between the two groups. RESULTS: The conventional protocol group was 122 cases and the new protocol group was 205 cases. No significant differences in sex, age, methods of suicide and self-harm attempt, rate of consent to case management, and admission to a ward were observed between the two groups. On the other hand, the total successful management rate in mobile messenger group was higher than that of the other group (P=0.020). CONCLUSION: This study showed that mobile messengers could be an alternative communication tool for the post-discharge case management of patients who attempted suicide and self-injurious behavior. Nevertheless, a well-designed future study might be needed to determine if that method would reduce the reattempt rate.
Subject(s)
Humans , Ambulatory Care Facilities , Case Management , Cell Phone , Counseling , Emergency Service, Hospital , Follow-Up Studies , Hand , Methods , Observational Study , Prospective Studies , Retrospective Studies , Self-Injurious Behavior , Suicide , Suicide, AttemptedABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: Data mining extracts meaningful information from large datasets. In this study, text mining techniques were used to extract keywords from the Journal of the Korean Society of Emergency Medicine, and the change trend was examined. METHODS: The rvest package in R was used to extract all papers published in the Journal of the Korean Society of Emergency Medicine from 2006 to 2016 that could be searched online. Among them, 3,952 keywords were extracted and studied. Using the selected keywords, the corpus was formed by refining keywords that did not correspond to MeSH (Medical Subject Headings) or were misspelled and had similar meanings based on agreement of researchers. Using the refined keywords, the frequencies of the keywords in the first and second halves of the studies were calculated and visualized. RESULTS: Word Cloud revealed that emergency medical service and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) were most frequently mentioned in both the first and second halves of the studies. In the first half, ultrasonography, stroke, poisoning, injury, and education were frequently mentioned, while in the second half, poisoning, injury, stroke, acute, and tomography were frequently mentioned. A pyramid graph revealed that the frequencies of emergency medical service and CPR were commonly high. CONCLUSION: Core keywords of the Journal of the Korean Society of Emergency Medicine were analyzed for correlations and trends. Changes in study topics according to key topics of interest and period were visually identified.
Subject(s)
Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation , Data Mining , Dataset , Education , Emergencies , Emergency Medical Services , Emergency Medicine , Poisoning , Stroke , UltrasonographyABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training can improve performance during simulated cardiac arrest; however, retention of skills after training remains uncertain. Recently, hands-only CPR has been shown to be as effective as conventional CPR. The purpose of this study is to compare the retention rate of CPR skills in laypersons after hands-only or conventional CPR training. METHODS: Participants were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 CPR training methods: 80 minutes of hands-only CPR training or 180 minutes of conventional CPR training. Each participant's CPR skills were evaluated at the end of training and 3 months thereafter using the Resusci Anne manikin with a skill-reporting software. RESULTS: In total, 252 participants completed training; there were 125 in the hands-only CPR group and 127 in the conventional CPR group. After 3 months, 118 participants were randomly selected to complete a post-training test. The hands-only CPR group showed a significant decrease in average compression rate (P=0.015), average compression depth (P=0.031), and proportion of adequate compression depth (P=0.011). In contrast, there was no difference in the skills of the conventional CPR group after 3 months. CONCLUSION: Conventional CPR training appears to be more effective for the retention of chest compression skills than hands-only CPR training; however, the retention of artificial ventilation skills after conventional CPR training is poor.
Subject(s)
Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation , Education , Heart Arrest , Manikins , Retention, Psychology , Thorax , VentilationABSTRACT
PURPOSE: The dose of drug and the size of instrument are determined based on children's weight. We aimed to validate the finger counting method (FCM) for weight estimation in Korean children using the Monte Carlo simulation. METHODS: We estimated the weight of Korean children aged 1 to 9 years by the FCM. These measurements were compared with the weight extracted by the Monte Carlo simulation applied to the “2007 Korean Children and Adolescents Growth Standard”. Pearson correlation coefficients (r) were measured to assess the correlation between the weight extracted by the simulation and that estimated by FCM. Bland-Altman analyses were performed to assess the agreement between the weight extracted by the simulation and that estimated by FCM and 2 other well-known pediatric weight estimation formulas (the Advanced Pediatric Life Support and Luscombe formulas). RESULTS: Data regarding 9,000 children's weight selected by age and gender was randomly extracted using the simulation. We found a positive correlation between the weight estimated by the FCM and the weight extracted (in boys, r = 0.896, P < 0.001; in girls, r = 0.899, P < 0.001). The FCM tended to underestimate weight in the children aged 7 years or old. CONCLUSION: This article suggests the usefulness of FCM in weight estimation, particularly in children younger than 7 years. With appreciation of the limitation in older children, the FCM could be applied to emergency practice.
Subject(s)
Adolescent , Child , Female , Humans , Body Weight , Emergencies , Emergency Service, Hospital , Fingers , Methods , Monte Carlo Method , ResuscitationABSTRACT
PURPOSE: Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) accounts for approximately 15% of all-cause mortality in the US and 50% of all cardiovascular mortalities in developed countries; 10% of cases have an underlying structural cardiac abnormality. An echocardiography has widely been used to evaluate cardiac abnormality, but it needs to be performed by emergency physicians available in the emergency department immediately after death, rather than by cardiologists. We aimed to determine whether post-mortem echocardiography (PME) performed in the emergency department may reveal such abnormalities. METHODS: We evaluated the reliability and validity of PME performed by emergency physicians in the emergency department. Measurement by a cardiologist was used as reference. RESULTS: Two emergency physicians performed PME on 3 out of the 4 included patients who died after unsuccessful cardiopulmonary resuscitation. PME was started within 10 minutes of death, and it took 10 minutes to complete. Parasternal views in either supine or left decubitus position were most helpful. The adequacy of the image was rated good to fair, and that of measurements was acceptable to borderline. Regarding the chamber size and left ventricular wall thickness, intraclass correlation coefficients for reliability and validity were 0.97 (n=15) and 0.95 (n=35), respectively (p<0.001). Evaluation of presence/absence of left ventricular wall thinning, valve calcification, and pericardial effusion was incomplete (3/7-5/7), precluding further analysis. CONCLUSION: Emergency physicians could perform reliable and valid PME to assess the chamber size and left ventricular wall thickness. A large prospective study with collaboration between emergency physicians and cardiologists would reveal the feasibility and usefulness of PME in diagnosing structural causes of sudden cardiac arrest.
Subject(s)
Humans , Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation , Cooperative Behavior , Death, Sudden, Cardiac , Developed Countries , Echocardiography , Emergencies , Emergency Service, Hospital , Heart Arrest , Mortality , Pericardial Effusion , Prospective Studies , Reproducibility of ResultsABSTRACT
PURPOSE: The rapid recognition of cardiac arrest is an important factor for survival in cardiac arrest patients, and gasping is a primary barrier to the recognition of a cardiac arrest. This study examined differences in capability of recognizing a cardiac arrest and gasping among lay people, hospital nurses, and medical dispatchers. METHODS: From January to July 2016, 193 participants (65 lay people 62 hospital nurses, and 66 medical dispatchers) watched video clips of a collapsed virtual patient with unresponsiveness, gasping or seizure and answered a questionnaire asking whether the patient was in cardiac arrest or not. The results of the questionnaire were analyzed and compared among the groups. RESULTS: The total score of the questionnaire on the determination of cardiac arrest among lay people, nurses, and medical dispatchers were significant (3.09±1.43 vs. 4.15±1.22 vs. 4.45±1.29 points, p < 0.01). In the questions regarding cardiac arrest with gasping, the correct answer rate was highest in the dispatchers, followed in order by nurses and lay people (82.5% vs. 54.8% vs. 29.7%, p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: In this study, lay people had the lowest recognition capability of a cardiac arrest and gasping among the groups. In addition, gasping is a meaningful barrier to cardiac arrest recognition for both lay people and healthcare providers.
Subject(s)
Humans , Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation , Health Personnel , Heart Arrest , Respiration , SeizuresABSTRACT
PURPOSE: Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training can improve performance during simulated cardiac arrest; however, retention of skills after training remains uncertain. Recently, hands-only CPR has been shown to be as effective as conventional CPR. The purpose of this study was to compare the retention rate of CPR skills in laypersons between the two hands-only and conventional CPR training methods. METHODS: Participants were randomly assigned to one of the two training groups: The hands-only CPR group with 80 minutes of training or the conventional CPR group with 180 minutes of training. The CPR skills for each participant were evaluated at the end of the training session and at 3 months thereafter, using the Resusci Anne® manikin with a skillreporting software. RESULTS: A total of 252 participants completed the training sessions; of which, 125 participants were in the hands-only CPR group and 127 in the conventional CPR group. After 3 months, 118 participants were randomly selected to complete a post-training test. The hands-only CPR group showed a significant decrease in the average compression rate (p=0.015), average compression depth (p=0.031), and proportion of adequate compression depth (p=0.011). Contrastingly, there were no differences with respect to the retention of skills in the conventional CPR group after 3 months. CONCLUSION: The conventional CPR training appears to be more effective with respect to retention of chest compression skills compared with hands-only CPR training; however, the retention of artificial ventilation skills after conventional CPR training remains poor.
Subject(s)
Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation , Education , Heart Arrest , Manikins , Retention, Psychology , Thorax , VentilationABSTRACT
PURPOSE: During cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), chest compression (CC) depth is influenced by the surface on which the patient is placed. We hypothesized that training healthcare providers to perform a CC depth of 6-7 cm (instead of 5-6 cm) on a manikin placed on a mattress during CPR in the hospital might improve their proper CC depth. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This prospective randomised controlled study involved 66 premedical students without CPR training. The control group was trained to use a CC depth of 5-6 cm (G 5-6), while the experimental group was taught to use a CC depth of 6-7 cm (G 6-7) with a manikin on the floor. All participants performed CCs for 2 min on a manikin that was placed on a bed 1 hour and then again 4 weeks after the training without a feedback. The parameters of CC quality (depth, rate, % of accurate depth) were assessed and compared between the 2 groups. RESULTS: Four students were excluded due to loss to follow-up and recording errors, and data of 62 were analysed. CC depth and % of accurate depth were significantly higher among students in the G 6-7 than G 5-6 both 1 hour and 4 weeks after the training (p0.05). CONCLUSION: Training healthcare providers to perform a CC depth of 6-7 cm could improve quality CC depth when performing CCs on patients who are placed on a mattress during CPR in a hospital setting.
Subject(s)
Adult , Female , Humans , Male , Beds , Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation/education , Health Personnel/education , Hospitals , Manikins , Pressure , Prospective Studies , Students, Medical , Thorax/physiologyABSTRACT
PURPOSE: The use of mechanical compression devices may be considered as an alternative method to treat cardiac arrest. This study aimed to assess the influence of vertical location of cardiac arrest scene to survival rate. Furthermore, it set out to examine the effect of mechanical compression devices on the survival rate. METHODS: This is retrospective, observational study of cardiac arrest patients from Gangdong-gu, Seoul between September 2015 and February 2016. The data were collected by 119 rescue records and cardiac arrest summary list, and the resuscitation result variables were analyzed. We also conducted a survey on 119 paramedics regarding the subjective valuation and drawback of using mechanical compression devices. RESULTS: The odd ratio of return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) in vertical location of cardiac arrest scene was 0.40 (95% confidence interval, 0.17 to 0.98; p=0.044). The odd ratio of survival to admission comparing manual compression with mechanical compression was 0.73 (95% confidence interval, 0.26 to 1.99; p=0.532). A total of 54 paramedics completed the survey, and 46 (85.2%) of them answered that there was a decrease in the quality of chest compression if the scene was other than the 1st floor. Fifty-three (93.1%) replied that mechanical compression devices can be a counter-measure. CONCLUSION: Vertical location of cardiac arrest scene independently effects ROSC of out of hospital cardiac arrest. However, there was no difference in the survival rate between manual and mechanical compressions.
Subject(s)
Humans , Allied Health Personnel , Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation , Heart Arrest , Methods , Observational Study , Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest , Resuscitation , Retrospective Studies , Seoul , Survival Rate , ThoraxABSTRACT
PURPOSE: In an effort to determine the characteristics of foreign suicides who visit an emergency center, this study analyzed suicidal attempt between natives and foreigners. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective analysis of 1,218 Korean and 149 foreign suicidal attempters who visited a regional emergency center from January 1, 2009 to December 31, 2013. We compared two groups according to age, sex, selected suicidal methods, past psychiatric history, medical examination and treatment acceptance, elapsed time to visit an emergency center after suicidal attempt, emergency center residence time, and hospitalization period. RESULTS: No difference in medical exam acceptance and tetanus vaccination was observed between the two groups. However, we found a difference in hospitalization acceptance. The prevalence rate of psychiatric disorders was lower in foreign suicides, and the refusal rate of psychiatric treatment was higher in foreign patients. CONCLUSION: In foreign suicides, social support including finance is required for easy access to health care service. In addition, more active interdisciplinary cooperation with the department of psychiatry and close observation is needed.