Comparison of Japanese nurse practitioner-led care and physician trainees-led care on patients’ length of stay in a secondary emergency department: A retrospective study

Abstract Objectives We compared nurse practitioner-led care and physician trainees-led care on patients’ length of stay in a secondary emergency department in Japan. Methods This observational research utilized a secondary data analysis of medical records. Participants (N = 1,419; mean age = 63.9 ± 23.4 years; 52.3% men) were patients who were transferred to the emergency department by an ambulance between April 2016 and March 2018 in western Tokyo. Multiple linear regression analyses were performed with the length of stay as the dependent variable and the factors related to the length of stay, including medical care leaders, as the independent variable to compare Japanese nurse practitioner-led care and physician trainees-led care on patients’ length of stay. Results Approximately half of the patients (n = 763; 53.8%) received Japanese nurse practitioner-led care. Patients’ length of stay was significantly shorter by six minutes in the Japanese nurse practitioner-led care group than the physician trainees-led care group. Conclusion Patients’ length of stay was significantly shorter by six minutes in the Japanese nurse practitioner group than the physician trainees’ group. This time difference suggests that the medical care led by Japanese nurse practitioners is more efficient. In the future, the cost-effectiveness of Japanese nurse practitioner medical care, safety, and patient satisfaction should be examined in a multi-institutional joint study.