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Healthcare professionals working in emergency care frequently deal with cardiac- and stroke-related cases, as both are among the leading causes of death in adults in the United States. Advanced cardiac life support (ACLS) training teaches healthcare professionals how to handle such cases through standard procedures and protocols for treatment. The following statistics showcase the top stroke/cardiac trends emergency department professionals are facing today. For more information, check out Health Ed Solutions’ online ACLS information for healthcare professionals.

Cardiac emergency department trends

According to a study from the National Center for Biotechnology Information, between 2001 and 2007, adults in the United States made approximately 600,729,000 emergency department visits – 1,001,000 of those visits (1 in every 600 visits) were due to a primary diagnosis of cardiac arrest.

The study also suggested that cardiac arrest is most common in older adults – the average age for a cardiac arrest patient in emergency departments was 66.7 years; increasing age served as a significant predictor of cardiac-related visits. Additionally, men had a higher rate than women of cardiac-related visits to the emergency department. The study did not find a significant difference in number of visits based on race or geographical region.

The American Heart Association released a report on the treatment of cardiac arrest in emergency departments as compared to other medical departments. Researchers found the following:

• Cardiac arrest patients admitted to the emergency department had a survival to discharge rate of 22.8 percent, which is higher than other hospital locations – the ICU had a rate of 15.5 percent, while telemetry had a rate of 19.8 percent, and the hospital floor had a rate of 10.8 percent.
• Emergency department cardiac arrest patients did better with secondary outcome measures than patients in other departments. Patients in the emergency department were less likely to be declared “do not attempt resuscitation,” had shorter lengths of stay in the hospital and had better discharge overall performance.

According to the researchers, emergency department location served as a positive predictor of improved survival rates for cardiac patients. This suggests that emergency department processes for care may contribute to better clinical outcomes; for example, emergency departments generally have a physician on-site, and the staff is usually trained in ACLS and pediatric advanced life support (PALS).

Stroke emergency department trends

Stroke remains one of the leading causes of death among adults in the United States. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC), approximately 6.2 million non-institutionalized adults have suffered from a stroke. Medical institutions receive 3.3 million visits annually wherein stroke is the primary diagnosis.

CDC data from 2009 showed that the average length of stay for a stroke patient was 5.3 days. That year alone, approximately 971,000 visits in which the patient received a primary diagnosis of stroke resulted in discharge from the hospital, while 128,842 stroke-related cases ended in death.

According to the CDC’s 2010 report on Health in the United States, older adults (ages 65 and older) still have the highest death rate for stroke among all age groups. Additionally, Black and African American individuals showed a higher rate of death from stroke than other races. There was not a significant difference between men and women.

Emergency care training at Health Ed Solutions

Health Ed Solutions is an online resource for healthcare professionals and individuals seeking healthcare certification. Online course offerings include ACLS certification and recertification, as well as a variety of other healthcare certification options. Interested in finding more information about ACLS training, stroke/cardiac trends and emergency care? Click here for online ACLS certification.