3. Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) - All submissions
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Item Emergency department attendance during ramadan(2017) Kilian, PatriciaIntroduction: The month of Ramadan is characterised by changes in dietary and lifestyle habits by those fasting, which could result in medical issues that may have an impact on the utilisation of the Emergency Department (ED) over this time period. Methods: ED attendance was compared during the Ramadan period to a specified Control period, and included a comparison of demographic and clinical features of patients, nationalities, diagnosis profile, time of admission and number of ED admissions. This was a retrospective, observational study set in a private hospital in Dubai, UAE, which included patients aged 16 years and older. Results: A total of 1766 patients presented to the ED, of which 822 (46.5%) were admitted during Ramadan, and 944 patients (53.5%) during the Control period. Although significantly more female patients attended the ED during the Control period, there were no differences in the ages nor the nationalities of the patients. Only one significant difference was noted in diagnoses, which was in the skinrelated category (p = 0.0012). Significantly more patients were seen per day during the Control period compared to Ramadan (p = 0.0057). A significant change in the time of ED attendance for MENA region patients was noted during Ramadan (p=0.0036) with more patients presenting during the night-time, which was not observed in non-MENA region patients. Conclusions: The significant shift in presentation towards the night was most notable in patients from the MENA region, and therefore most likely to be due to fasting. In addition, changes in certain diagnoses and gender distribution over the study period may assist in future ED management planning during Ramadan.Item Extraordinary emergencies : reproducing the sacred child in institutional interaction.(2014-09-15) Rafaely, DaniellaThis research report examines telephonic and written data from an emergency medical services centre in the Western Cape and seeks to uncover the language practices that speakers use in order to create what I term “extraordinary emergencies”. Since one of the overarching institutional aims of the emergency call centre is that of “preservation of life”, the majority of emergencies are reproduced by emergency call-takers as routine events, specifically for the purpose of managing them most efficiently and thus working towards the institutional aim of preserving life. However, in certain instances, this institutional agenda is temporarily halted or abandoned in favour of a competing agenda, what I have termed the “personal” agenda enacted by the speaker. This personal agenda works to the reproduction of particular norms and values, and speakers are seen as morally accountable for reproducing them. This research report makes use of discursive analytic practices, specifically conversation analysis, as a method by which to highlight subtle and delicate moments in the interaction that recreate the shared value of the “sacred child” in real-time interaction. Keywords: emergency, childhood, sexual assault, conversation analysis, institutions