Research Portfolio

Evaluation of the Emergency Department Ambulance Offload Nurse (EDAOLN) in Queensland

Queensland Health have recognised that patient flow strategies are required for emergency departments in order to i) improve the patient journey and experience; ii) reduce delays and increase access to health care services; and iii) provide best clinical practice across the state. An Emergency Department Ambulance Off-Load Nurse (EDAOLN) role was commenced on Friday 17 August 2012 at the Gold Coast Hospital. The aim of this advanced nursing role was to provide rapid triage and assessment for patients arriving to the ED by ambulance and to commence initial meaningful treatment as required (such as X-rays, pathology, analgesia) on a 24/7…

Principal Investigator: A/Prof David Green
Amount Awarded: $40,553
Institution: Gold Coast University Hospital

SWAMPED: Linking best practice workforce models to Emergency Department funding

The aims of this research are to link best practice ED workforce models to available ED funding under an activity-based funding (ABF), while contributing to the development of an improved national activity and outcome-based ED funding model. This research will identify the current status of funding of EDs, identify and critically appraise models for funding of EDs and identify the workforce implications of those funding models and propose a State-wide ED clinical workforce framework.

Principal Investigator: Dr Anthony Bell
Amount Awarded: $190,172
Institution: Queensland Elizabeth II Jubilee Hopsital

Checking radiology reports and reviewing patient records: an IT solution for preventing missed limb fractures.

Patients experiencing pain and swelling in their limbs following an accident will often have X-Rays in the Emergency Department. The doctor will look at these X-rays for signs of a fracture and then treat the patient accordingly. The X-Ray specialist elsewhere in the hospital will also look at these X-Rays and write a report. However, this report may not be available until after the patient and doctor have both gone home. If the X-Ray specialist’s report identifies a fracture, other staff working in the Emergency Department will need to go back and double-check the patient’s records to make sure the…

Principal Investigator: A/Prof Kevin Chu
Amount Awarded: $139,001
Institution: Royal Brisbane & Women's Hospital

A Comprehensive Evaluation of a Hospital In Nursing Home (HINH) Program in Three Queensland Hospitals.

Increasing demand for hospital Emergency Departments (EDs) has resulted in long ED waiting times attracting media commentary and political attention. There are many factors contributing to the increasing demand in EDs, among which are increasing numbers of elderly patients in an aging population. Further more, a significant proportion of elderly patients attending EDs are from nursing homes where medical support is limited. To actively address this challenge, EDs in Queensland hospitals have been implementing a Hospital In the Nursing Homes (HINH) program, which involves sending clinical staff to nursing home facilities to provide acute medical care for residents, to provide…

Principal Investigator: Dr Bill Lukin
Amount Awarded: $297,846
Institution: Royal Brisbane & Women's Hospital

The Queensland Aeromedical Retrieval System: A Review of Current Status and the Impact of State-wide System Developments.

Aeromedical retrievals and transfers are an essential component of modern Emergency Medicine. These services provide high quality emergency care to the patient and facilitate transport from the roadside or smaller hospitals to larger centres able to perform potentially life saving treatments and provide definitive care. Thus they help ensure equity of access to high quality medical care regardless of physical isolation. This is especially important in Queensland, the most decentralised Australian state. Until recently aeromedical clinical coordination and retrieval services in Queensland were provided by a several different organizations. In 2005 a system restructure was commenced and a state-wide centralised…

Principal Investigator: A/Prof Peter Aitken
Amount Awarded: $75,370
Institution: The Townsville Hospital