Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/560195
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 23 AUGUST 2015 8 News MATTHEW VELLA MATER Dei Hospital's day care unit has favourable rates of de- layed discharges and unplanned admissions, a study by three doc- tors from the Department of An- aesthesia and Intensive Care has found. Of 3,599 patients admitted to the day care unit over 45 days (March-April 2014) – of whom 1,855 were for day surgeries and 1,744 as endoscopy cases – just 142 were not discharged as planned. Fifty patients had their dis- charge delayed by up to five hours, and 92 required overnight admission following a day-case procedure. Most of the delayed cases had received a general an- aesthetic (95%). A discharge is considered as delayed when it occurs after 6pm on the same day. "Mater Dei Hospital has a rea- sonable rate of delayed discharg- es and unplanned admissions fol- lowing day procedures, especially when compared with data from UK hospitals," researchers Jes- sica Sant, Glenn Paul Abela, and Daniel Farrugia wrote in their study. Day surgery entails admitting patients to hospital for a planned surgical procedure, after which the patient returns home on the same day – reducing waiting times and lessening hospital costs. At a rate of 5.5% of unplanned admission for day surgeries, Mater Dei's rate was above the Royal College of Anaesthetists' 2% standard, but was still less than some centres in the UK, such as the Newham University Hospital in East London (10.3%) and the Forth Valley Royal Hospital in Larbert, Scotland (6.6%). "There is definite need for better documentation by both clinicians and nursing staff," the researchers said of the need to upgrade day- to-day practices. "There were too many cases whose discharge was either de- layed or who were admitted with- out any justification found in the case notes. Also, too many pa- tients were admitted to hospital because their procedure started late in the day… this may point towards the need of extending day care unit opening hours be- yond 6pm, as well as the schedul- ing of day cases earlier during the day," they add. Mater Dei registers low rate of delayed discharges from day-care unit Four injured in traffic accident A Spanish man and a Polish wom- an, both 26 years of age, remain in critical condition following a traf- fic accident in the early hours of Saturday morning. The accident happened in Triq Mikiel Anton Vassalli in Swieqi at around 5:30am. The cars, a Volvo and a Toyota, were being driven in opposite di- rections. The Volvo was being driven by a 68-year-old man from Msida while the Toyota was being driven by a 24-year-old woman from Qormi. The four passengers, a 19-year- old Slovene woman, a 26-year-old Polish woman, and two men – a Spaniard and a Romanian, 30 – were all injured. While the Spanish man and the Polish woman are still in critical condition, the condition of the fe- male driver and the Slovene teen- ager has improved and they are no longer in danger of dying. The condition of the Romanian remains unknown while the 68- year-old driver of the Volvo is still receiving medical care.