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Nearly one third of U.S. emergency departments have instituted chest pain units (CPUs) in an attempt to reduce costs and improve outcomes. To determine the effect of CPUs on rates of emergency admissions and repeat ED visits and admissions within 30 days, British researchers randomized 14 hospitals to either establish a CPU or continue with routine care. CPU staffing, hours, and location were determined at the discretion of the individual hospitals.
During the year after the CPUs were established, the proportion of chest pain patients who were admitted on the initial visit did not differ between CPU hospitals and control hospitals. Compared with control hospitals, CPU hospitals had a small increase in the proportion of chest pain patients wi…