Abstract
In 1971 a proposal for a new emergency care system for Greater Copenhagen (1·3 million inhabitants) was submitted to the local authorities in the area by a committee of experts. The proposed system would contain emergency wards with beds, centers for traumatic surgery, coronary units, modern emergency ambulances, a central referral office with wireless connections to all ambulances for the purpose of giving medical advice, and clinics for light casualties.
The proposal was based upon a casualty survey in the area during November 1968, covering all hospitals, to which 16,500 patients were admitted through the casualty departments. For each patient, extensive information was collected; identification; time, place and type of accident; diagnosis; ambulance response and trip time.
The proposal was evaluated by a model assigning patients to the new system and a linear simulation model for the location and number of ambulances based upon an evaluation of the value of the patient’s time and condition. The location and number of hospitals were determined by political decisions, dating back to the beginning of the 1960s.
The system is in the process of implementation.
The investigation and the proposed system described in the paper are the results of a collective enterprise in which Lars Bostrop, M.A., Niels Stephenson, M.D., and Gunnar Schiøler, M.D., took part, together with the author. A regional advisory committee for emergency care has submitted the proposal to the relevant authorities.
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© 1974 The International Economic Association
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Christiansen, U. (1974). Demand for Emergency Health Care and Regional Systems for Provision of Supply. In: Perlman, M. (eds) The Economics of Health and Medical Care. International Economic Association Series. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-63660-0_14
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