Trends in emergency department utilization.

Increasing demand for non-urgent medical services provided in emergency departments is an unforeseen consequence of our present health care system. Factors in the organization, finance and payment of health services may account for escalating utilization rates. In this paper, patient characteristics, patterns of medical practice, present obligations of hospital emergency departments, and universal health insurance are examined to determine their influence on the demand for emergency department care.Finally, methods for providing equally available and accessible health care services more appropriate to the primary health care demands seen in emergency departments are discussed.