Clinical trials

Background Frequent attenders (FAs) at emergency department (ED) in Singapore hospitals have been increasing over the years. More than half of the FAs are reported to be alcohol-related frequent attenders (ARFA) and they were found to be using EDs unnecessarily. We aim to assess if there will be a difference in patient outcomes in terms of ED usage and cost-effectiveness by implementing an assertive community treatment (ACT) program to manage AFRAs. Methods This is a prospective, multi-centre, before-and-after, superiority and cohort study to assess the impact of ACT from 4 study sites. 200-300 patients will be recruited and followed up for 12 months. The primary objective of the study is to investigate whether there will be a reduction in AFRA ED attendances. The secondary objective is to estimate the change in total cost utilization. Conclusion/Significance All patients who are on ACT programme will be enrolled in this study. The study intervention will be used as a new mode of care at participating hospitals. We expect to see reduced alcohol addiction level, reduced isolation level, improved motivation and better overall health. With reduced alcohol-related hospital visits, we would also expect to see improved healthcare utilization by ARFAs which will lead to increased cost savings to the healthcare systems and decreased social costs.