Differences in Admission Rates of Children with Pneumonia Between Pediatric and Community Emergency Departments

Patients presenting to a dedicated pediatric ED had a higher admission rate than did those at a community ED. Patients in the PED were more likely to arrive by ambulance and less likely to have active health insurance coverage. Patients at the PED were more likely to be hypoxic than patients at the CED. These findings highlight important practice differences between PEDs and CEDs that may inform strategies to improve patient outcomes, reduce costs, and promote more effective, evidence-based care. Future studies should further investigate the drivers of these variations and evaluate targeted interventions to optimize care across settings.