Department of Emergency Medicine, Tallaght University Hospital, Cookstown, Dublin 24, D24 NR0A, Ireland.
Ir J Med Sci. 2019 Nov;188(4):1413-1415. doi: 10.1007/s11845-019-02006-7. Epub 2019 Mar 14.
To examine the effect of a blizzard in March 2018 on presentations to TUH ED.
A retrospective descriptive study of ED records from 1-5th of March 2018.
Of 479 presentations, 71 were related to the blizzard. Sixty-seven percent (n = 48) of presentations were due to injuries and 15% (n = 11) were due to medical conditions. Ten percent (n = 7) of presentations related to logistical issues and 7% (n = 5) were due to social reasons.
DISCUSSION/CONCLUSION: The volume of attendance fell initially during snowfall then rose sharply as the weather improved. Injuries were the predominant cause of presentations. Physical exertion while outdoors in the snow caused several patients to present with medical complaints. Heightened public awareness of the impact of weather warnings may help to prevent some of the social and logistical presentations to the ED. The exceptional dedication of the emergency service workforce is acknowledged and appreciated. Future planning is needed to keep morbidity and mortality from blizzards low.
探讨 2018 年 3 月暴风雪对 TUH ED 就诊的影响。
对 2018 年 3 月 1 日至 5 日的 ED 记录进行回顾性描述性研究。
在 479 次就诊中，有 71 次与暴风雪有关。67%（n=48）的就诊是由于受伤，15%（n=11）是由于医疗状况。10%（n=7）的就诊与后勤问题有关，7%（n=5）是由于社会原因。
讨论/结论：降雪期间就诊人数最初下降，随后随着天气好转急剧上升。受伤是就诊的主要原因。在雪地中户外活动时的体力消耗导致一些患者出现医疗投诉。公众对天气警报影响的认识提高可能有助于预防一些社会和后勤方面的 ED 就诊。感谢和赞赏应急服务人员的非凡奉献精神。需要进行未来规划，以降低暴风雪的发病率和死亡率。
