Background: An 'unwell' patient is a common presentation.
Methods: We studied all ED 'unwell' admissions over 6 years, assessing factors influencing mortality with logistic regression.
Results: From 49,965 admissions, the ED diagnosis was 'unwell' in 3650 (7.3%). 'Unwell' presentations were older and had longer length of stay. Mortality was not different 4.2% vs 4.6 % (p=0.28). Respiratory patients and those >=70 years had increased mortality, 8.3% (95%CI: 5.9%, 10.6%) and 7.1% (5.7%, 8.4%) respectively. Being unwell predicted a better outcome - univariate OR 0.35 (95%CI: 0.24, 0.52), multivariable OR 0.68 (95%CI: 0.44, 1.03).
Conclusion: A diagnosis of 'unwell' applied to a heterogenous group; clinical trajectories and outcomes were sufficiently different to preclude targeted admission avoidance as a strategy.