Admissions
The primary outcome measure was number of unplanned admissions per
month. Over the four-year period and this showed a significant
reduction. Median number of unplanned admissions per month decreased
from 6(2.5-8.5) in the control period, to 3.5(2-5) p=.04 after
introduction of the clinic. In particular, there was a significant
difference between the numbers admitted without inflammation or
infection before and after commencement of the service. In the two years
prior to the clinic commencing there were 68 admissions without
inflammation, and 63 with inflammation. While the numbers admitted with
inflammation remained relatively stable at 59, the number admitted
without inflammation reduced to 28 (p=.005). Point biserial correlation
showed a moderate negative correlation between monthly admission rates
and whether the month fell before or after the commencement of the
clinic r=-.32931 (p=.02228) In the period since the commencement of the
clinic there is a moderate negative correlation between monthly
admissions and time since commencement R=-0.35 (two sided p=0.0392)