Emergency-room use in a small rural hospital.

Studies have suggested that the use of the emergency room (ER) for non-emergency service delays treatment access for bona fide emergency cases. Most studies, however, have focused on the actual use of the emergency room, and have failed to involve patients in assessing the reasons they chose to come to the ER. In this study, the authors analyzed an emergency room according to types and diagnoses of presenting problems, daily or hourly use, age-sex distribution of users, and proximity of users to the hospital, to determine the primary function of the facility.