2Ege University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Ä°nternal Medicine, Ä°zmir, Turkey
3Ege University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Public Health, Ä°zmir, Turkey
4Dokuz Eylül University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Emergency, İzmir, Turkey DOI : 10.31086/tjgeri.2018240412 Introduction: This study was prepared with the objective of determining the ratio of use of ambulances by the patients 65 years of age and older who applied to emergency department and the indicators for the use of ambulances.
Materials and Method: This cross-sectional research study, enrolled patients at least 65 years of age or older, who applied to the emergency department in Izmir Dokuz Eylül University Hospital. Two measurement tools were prepared with the objective of gathering the study data. The first measuring tool was prepared with the objective of evaluating the indicators of ambulance use by the patients, whereas the second measuring tool was for the situations of using emergency department.
Results: 555 patients were included in the study. Only 34.2% of these patients reported that they came to the emergency department with an ambulance. It was observed that patients living with their families, and those with medical emergencies, i.e. who did not experience a trauma or an accident, used ambulances less frequently for going to the emergency department (p<0.05). Among patients who came to the emergency department with private vehicles, 59.2% stated that they did not call an ambulance because they thought that it would be quicker to come with their own resources. On the other hand, among patients who came to the hospital with an ambulance, a ratio of 67.4% replied that they called the ambulance because of emergency.
Conclusion: The results of this study suggest that public awareness about 112 ambulance systems should be increased, especially for elderly patients.
Keywords : Geriatrics; Ambulance; Emergency Medical Services; Emergency Service, Hospital