I'm currently working my way through another course. This course focuses on issues and trends in healthcare and developing skills in academic argument. This course is straining my ability to balance home, work and academic life, but soldiering through and enjoying the subject, if not the format of the course.
Here's a little paper discussing issues and trends. As usual, a focus on ED nursing and an example of the issues we see in the ED.
How Healthcare Trends Impact Current Issues – Canada’s Aging Population and
Emergency Department Overcrowding
To appreciate the impact healthcare trends have on current issues it is necessary to understand the meaning of the term trend and issue. The relationship between a tend and an issue can be demonstrated through trend of Canadas aging population and its connection to the current issue of emergency department (ED) overcrowding.
A trend is defined by Merriam-Webster Dictionary as “the general movement over time of a statistically detectable change” (n.d.). Being able to define a trend therefore requires proof of an event that has been recorded throughout a period of time. Although evidence of past trends may be used to hypothesise future events, the proof of a trend is historical in nature. An issue is a “vital or unsettled matter” (n.d., Merriam-Webster). Where a trend predicts the future by using historical information to infer future outcomes, issues present a current matter that needs to be further researched or debated in order to anticipate its impact.
The current healthcare trend of Canadas aging population is demonstrated through evidence gathered by Statistics Canada. The percentage of the population over the age of 65 is currently 16.9% of the total population (Statistics Canada, 2017) a trend that has been steadily increasing over the last 40 years and is projected to reach 20% of the total population by 2080 (Government of Canada, 2014). Thus, the aging of Canadas population is a statistically significant trend that is proven through data recorded over time.
Emergency department overcrowding can be considered an issue due to an increasing number of visits and patients spending longer in the ED (Canadian Institute for Health Information, 2017). The vital importance of this issue is highlighted in the negative effects ED overcrowding has on patient care including poor patient outcomes, treatment delays, decreased patient satisfaction and increased cost (Hoot & Aronsky, 2008). Debate occurs due to multiple causes of overcrowding including; lack of acute care beds, lack of alternative level of care (ALC), staffing shortages (Affleck, Parks, Drummond, Rowe, & Ovens, 2013), increasing number of visits (CIHI, 2017) and an increase in the number of Canadian seniors (Health Quality Ontario, 2016; Morley et al, 2018). Evidence overcrowding exists and the debate surrounding potential solutions to better serve patients is what makes ED overcrowding a current issue in healthcare.
The relationship between trends and issues is important as the statistical significance of a trend over time can be evidence for debate on current issues. The statistical trend of an aging population (Statistics Canada, 2017) demonstrates the increased demand being placed on Canada’s emergency departments (CIHI, 2017; Health Quality Ontario, 2016; Morley et al, 2018), potentially worsening the current issue of overcrowding which although multifactorial in nature will be directly affected by an aging population. Awareness of how significant healthcare trends are affecting current healthcare issues should incite policy makers and leaders in healthcare to seek solutions to todays issues before they develop into the trends of tomorrow.
References
Canadian Institute for Health Information. (2017). Emergency Department wait times in Canada continue to rise. Retrieved from https://www.cihi.ca/en/emergency-department-wait- times-in-canada-continuing-to-rise
Government of Canada. (2014). Action for Seniors Report. Retrieved from https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/programs/seniors-action- report.html
Health Quality Ontario. (2016). Under Pressure: Emergency department performance in Ontario. Retrieved from https://www.hqontario.ca/portals/0/Documents/system- performance/under-pressure-report-en.pdf
Hoot, N. & Aronsky, D. (2008). Systematic Review of Emergency Department Crowding: Causes, Effects, and Solutions. Annals of Emergency Medicine, 52(2), 126 - 136. Retrieved from https://www.annemergmed.com/article/S0196-0644(08)00606-9/fulltext
Issue. (n.d.). In Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary. Retrieved from https://www.merriam- webster.com/dictionary/issue
Morley, C., Unwin, M., Peterson, G.M., Stankovich, J., and Kinsman, L. (2018). Emergency department crowding: A systematic review of causes, consequences and solutions. PLoS ONE. 13(8):1-42. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0203316.
Statistics Canada. (2017). Analysis: Population by Age and Sex, Catalogue no. 91-215-X. Retrieved from https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/91-215-x/2017000/sec2-eng.htm
Trend. (n.d.). In Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary. Retrieved from https://www.merriam- webster.com/dictionary/trend
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