Availability of Pediatric Emergency Care Coordinators in United States Emergency Departments

Objective To determine the availability of pediatric emergency care coordinators (PECCs) in US emergency departments (EDs) in 2015, and to determine the change in availability of PECCs in US EDs from 2015 to 2017. Study design As part of the National Emergency Department Inventory-USA, we administered a survey to all 5326 US EDs open in 2015; all 5431 in 2016; and all 5489 in 2017. Through these surveys, we assessed the availability of PECCs. Descriptive statistics characterized EDs with and without PECCs; multivariable logistic regressions identified characteristics independently associated with PECC availability. Results Among the 4443 (83%) EDs with 2015 data, 763 (17.2%) reported the availability of at least 1 PECC. The states with the largest proportion of EDs with PECCs were Delaware (78%, 7/9 EDs) and Maryland (48%, 20/42 EDs), and no PECCs were reported in Mississippi, North Dakota, or Wyoming. Availability of a PECC was associated (P < .001) with larger annual total ED visit volume and a dedicated pediatric ED area. Compared with the 17.2% of EDs reporting a PECC in 2015, 833 (18.6%) reported 1 in 2016, and 917 (19.8%) reported 1 in 2017 (P < .001). Conclusions Availability of at least 1 PECC increased slightly (2.6%) between 2015 and 2017, but similar to 80% of EDs continue without one.

Automated summary

The availability of pediatric emergency care coordinators (PECCs) in US emergency departments (EDs) slightly increased from 2015 to 2017, with 17.2% in 2015, 18.6% in 2016, and 19.8% in 2017. While PECCs can help improve the quality of care in EDs, about 80% of EDs still do not have them.