Finding good alternatives to hospitalisation: a data register study in five municipal acute wards in Norway

Table 1 Characteristics of the five MAWs

	MAW 1	MAW 2	MAW 3	MAW 4	MAW 5
Number of beds	11	8	10	4	7
Travel distance to the hospital by car, minutes	30	15	30	45	45
Physician(s) present Weekdays (08–16)	yes	yes	yes	yes	yes
Physician(s) present Weekends (09–15)	yes	yes	yes	yes	no
Nurse(s) present	24/7	24/7	24/7	24/7	24/7
Travel distance to the casualty by car, minutes	0	0	5	5	15^a
Co-located with short-term care	yes	yes	yes	yes	yes
X-ray available	daytime	daytime	daytime	-	mobile X-ray to days per week
Laboratory haemoglobin, WBC differential, CRP, glucose and urine examinations available	daytime	daytime	daytime	daytime	daytime
Blood gas available	at causality	at causality	yes	no	at causality
ECG available	yes	yes	yes	yes	yes
Bladder scanning available	yes	yes	yes	yes	yes

Abbreviations: MAW Municipality acute ward, Casualty after-hours emergency services provided by primary care physicians in dedicated locations, as consultation wards (no treatment), WBC differential white blood cell differential, CRP C-reactive protein, ECG Electrocardiogram, Blood gas a group of tests that are performed together to measure the pH and the amounts PaO2 and PaCO2 (arterial pressure of oxygen and carbon dioxide), bicarbonate (HCO3), lactate, Haemoglobin (Hb), electrolytes, and blood sugar present in a sample of blood, Bladder scanning ultrasonic reflections measures the amount of urine inside the bladder
^a means that travel time by car to the casualty was 15 min in 2019 and 2020. Travel distance by car in 2014 – 2019 was 0 min

ISSN: 1472-6963