We noticed a clump of Qs around emergency departments (ED) systems, workforce, and patient experience. And following on from the approach we used yesterday, we analysed and expanded these into wider topics

1. Reducing Demand / Preventing Admissions

Existing Qs:

  • Effectiveness of community-based models of emergency care.
  • Best strategies to prevent unnecessary admissions.
  • Effectiveness of advance care planning in preventing admissions.

Potential additional Qs:

  • What is the impact of urgent care centres, walk-in clinics, and out-of-hours GP services on ED demand?
  • How effective are paramedic-led interventions (e.g., treat-and-refer pathways, community paramedicine) in reducing ED conveyance?
  • Do public education campaigns (on appropriate ED use) reduce unnecessary visits?
  • What role do integrated care systems (linking primary, community, and social care) play in reducing ED demand?
  • What is the cost-effectiveness of these demand-reduction strategies?

2. Workforce & Staffing in EDs

Existing Qs:

  • Impact of ED layout on staffing levels.
  • Frameworks for ensuring safe nursing staffing.
  • International evidence base for safe staffing.

Potential additional Qs:

  • How do staff-to-patient ratios correlate with patient safety outcomes in EDs?
  • What is the impact of skill mix (nurses, nurse practitioners, physician associates, consultants) on ED performance and safety?
  • How does burnout and turnover among ED nurses and physicians affect patient outcomes?
  • What is the evidence for flexible staffing models (e.g., surge staffing during peaks) in maintaining safety?
  • How does the physical environment (e.g., single rooms vs. open bays, digital monitoring systems) influence staff workload and efficiency?

3. Stakeholder Perspectives & Communication

Existing Qs:

  • Perceived role of EDs among the public, professionals, and policymakers.
  • Interventions to improve nurse–family communication in paediatric EDs.

Potential additional Qs:

  • How do patients with frequent ED use perceive the role of emergency departments?
  • What is the impact of shared decision-making tools on communication and satisfaction in the ED?
  • How do cultural and language barriers affect communication and outcomes in ED settings?
  • What interventions improve staff–patient communication in high-stress environments (e.g., triage, resus)?
  • How do media portrayals of EDs shape public expectations and demand?

Bringing these strands together, what stands out is just how multi-dimensional the evidence needs to be. Emergency departments are not only clinical environments but also systems under pressure, workplaces with unique staffing challenges, and touchpoints where public expectations, professional realities, and policy goals all collide.

By clustering the questions in this way, we can start to see where the gaps lie: for example, plenty is known about demand reduction through community models, but far less about the cultural narratives that shape how people view and use EDs. Likewise, staffing frameworks exist, but how they interact with design, technology, and wellbeing is less clear.

This sort of mapping doesn’t provide the answers, but it does highlight the terrain — showing where a stronger evidence base could make the biggest difference to practice and policy.

We’ll continue to explore these clusters in future posts. In the meantime, we’d love to hear from readers: which of these areas feels most pressing in your context? And are there other questions you’d add to the mix?