Distribution of equine and food animal emergency caseload by time of day, day of week, time of year, holiday, and phase of moon at an academic ambulatory and referral hospital.
Abstract: Determine the association of time of day, day of week, time of year, holiday, and phase of moon on academic ambulatory and hospital emergency caseload for equine and food animal species. Methods: Retrospective study. Methods: Large animal teaching hospital emergency service. Methods: Equine and food animals. Methods: None. Results: The hospital database was searched for after-hours on-farm and in-hospital emergencies seen from 2014 to 2020. Variables included date and time of admission, species (equine or food/fiber animal [FA]), and hospital service (field or in-hospital). The association of the caseload with time of day, day of week, day of year (holiday, full moon, or new moon), and season of year was defined and examined. The majority of equine field-based emergencies occurred on the weekend, in contrast to 44.8% of hospital cases. Most equine emergencies occurred between 4:00 p.m. and midnight on weekdays and between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. on weekends for both field (89.1% and 46.9%) and hospital (82.8% and 48%) services. The same was true for FA cases on the farm (90% and 49.2%) and in the hospital (85% and 51.4%). More equine cases (67%) were seen in the field than FA. Winter had the fewest emergency cases for all species and locations, and spring had the most for FA. The majority of holiday equine emergencies were seen in the field (62.2%), but the majority of holiday FA emergencies were seen in the hospital (66.3%). Moon phase had no significance on caseload for all species and locations. Conclusions: Saturdays and Sundays were the busiest days for all species and services. Winter was the slowest time for emergencies for all species and services. Most emergencies were seen between 4:00 p.m. and midnight on weekdays and between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. on Sundays and Saturdays.
© Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Society 2023.
Publication Date: 2023-09-14 PubMed ID: 37708331DOI: 10.1111/vec.13334Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary
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The research looks into the influence of time, day of the week, year, holidays, and moon phases on the number of emergency cases involving horses and food animals treated in a large academic teaching hospital from 2014 to 2020. The main findings indicate that the highest activity occurs on weekends and there is no correlation between the moon phase and emergency cases.
Background and Methodology
- This study is retrospective in nature and relies on data collected over six years, from 2014 to 2020.
- The team examined the data from a large animal teaching hospital’s emergency service focusing on equine and food animals.
- The researchers gathered information including the date and time of admission, species (either equine or a food/fiber animal), and whether the emergency occurred in-field or in-hospital.
- An evaluation was then made on the association between the case load and variables including time of day, day of week, day of year (categorized under holiday, full moon, or new moon), and the season.
Findings
- Majority of emergencies with horses that required field services happened on weekends. A slightly less majority (44.8%) of cases required hospital services.
- Most equine emergencies occurred between 4:00 p.m. and midnight on weekdays and between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. on weekends, irrespective of whether they were field or hospital cases.
- In comparison, emergencies involving food animals occured at similar times for both in-field and in-hospital cases.
- More emergencies involved horses (67%) in the field compared to food animals. The seasons also had an impact, with Winter seeing the fewest emergency cases across all species and locations, while Spring had the most food animal emergencies.
- Holiday emergencies mostly dealt with horses in the field (62.2%), while most food animal emergencies happened in the hospital (66.3%).
- There was no significant impact of the moon phase on the emergency case load across all species and locations.
Conclusions
- Saturdays and Sundays were identified as the busiest days for emergencies involving all species and across all services.
- Winter was the slowest period for emergencies involving all species and across all services.
- Most emergencies were seen between 4:00 p.m. and midnight on weekdays and between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. on weekends.
Cite This Article
APA
Graves MT, Zhu X.
(2023).
Distribution of equine and food animal emergency caseload by time of day, day of week, time of year, holiday, and phase of moon at an academic ambulatory and referral hospital.
J Vet Emerg Crit Care (San Antonio), 33(6), 696-704.
https://doi.org/10.1111/vec.13334 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences, University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine, Knoxville, Tennessee, USA.
- Office of Information Technology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee, USA.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Horses
- Retrospective Studies
- Moon
- Holidays
- Emergencies / veterinary
- Emergency Service, Hospital
- Hospitals
- Referral and Consultation
- Horse Diseases / epidemiology
- Horse Diseases / therapy
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