Preventable and Primary-Care Treatable Emergency Department and In-Patient Utilization

This project will describe patterns of emergency department and hospital in-patient utilization of New Brunswick area residents. Hospital utilization data maintained by the Department of Health and Senior Services will be used to calculate population-based utilization rates for 2004 (the most recent year available) for conditions that could, in many cases, be more effectively treated in other outpatient settings. Data for children and adults will be analyzed separately, and all statistics will be age-sex adjusted. Emergency department and in-patient utilization patterns for specific conditions, such as asthma, as well as broader categories of preventable and primary-care treatable conditions, will be analyzed. Utilization rates of New Brunswick area residents will be compared to New Jersey overall and to other urban communities.