Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2007 Jun;24(6):402-4.
doi: 10.1136/emj.2006.044933.

The "4-hour target": emergency nurses' views

Andy Mortimore  1 , Simon Cooper
Affiliations

The "4-hour target": emergency nurses' views

Andy Mortimore et al. Emerg Med J. 2007 Jun.

Abstract

Objective: To explore nurses' views and to identify the perceived advantages and disadvantages of the "4-hour target."

Methods: The study was based in one emergency department (ED) in the UK and took a generic qualitative approach. A stratified sample of nine experienced ED nurses were recruited for semi-structured interviews. Data was analysed using the framework analysis approach.

Results: The 4-hour target was considered an overall success in reducing waiting times and increasing patient satisfaction. However, staff expressed concerns over the imposed nature of the target, workload pressures, quality of care, and the level of support from secondary and primary care.

Conclusion: Although deemed an overall success, there were reservations as to the target's sustainability. Recommendations are made for improved communication between primary and secondary care and establishing the target as a shared goal within the hospital environment.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: None

References

    1. Green T, Thorogood N.Qualitative methods for health research. London: Sage Publications, 2004
    1. Pope C, Ziebland S, Mays N. Qualitative research in health care. Analysing qualitative data. BMJl 2000320114–116. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Department of Health The NHS plan. London: HMSO, 2000
    1. Department of Health Reforming emergency care. London: HMSO, 2001
    1. Department of Health Clinical exceptions to the 4 hour emergency care target. 2003. http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/Publicati... (accessed 23 March 2007)