Two Augusta hospitals were chock full Tuesday, causing them to send some patients to other facilities.
University Hospital went on "diversion" for patients who needed a medical/surgical bed or a telemetry or monitored bed at 6 a.m. and went back to normal at 3 p.m., said spokeswoman Rebecca Sylvester. University typically gets a lot of cardiac patients, so there is normally a high demand for those beds, she said. There might have been a surge in procedures that were postponed during the holidays, Mrs. Sylvester said.
"We're getting cranked back up now," she said.
The extra patients might have spilled over to Medical College of Georgia Hospital and Clinics, which went on diversion Tuesday afternoon except for pediatric and trauma patients, spokeswoman Denise Parrish said. There wasn't a surge in any particular type of patient, just a normal flow, she said.
"It's not like we have a big outbreak of anything," Mrs. Sylvester added.
The problem of diversion, or sending ambulances away to other facilities, was one of the problems highlighted in a 2006 Institute of Medicine report that found ambulances were being turned away at a rate of one per minute. The report blamed overcrowded emergency rooms, a lack of funding and little communication between facilities.
Reach Tom Corwin at (706) 823-3213 or tom.corwin@augustachronicle.com.
Comments
People need to stop using emergency room for non-emergent problems......I have worked in an ER and I have seen people come in for minor things like a splinter in their foot or an ingrown toe nail.......and then complain because their wait is so long. Emergency rooms are for emergencies, they are not walk in clinics.......and people wonder why they are over crowded and why the prices are so high, go figure.....
5:00 you are right about that!!
yes and if your kid has a cough...dimatap !!! no reason to haul the entire clan to the ER.
I totally agree, ER is for EMERGENCIES... Some would realize that if they had to pay for it everytime they went ..
I completely agree with the first three comments. The night my mother died, she was 12th to be seen. Several of the others only had bad colds and wanted Tylenol. Why there? Because they could get the insurance to pay 100% for it? That was ridiculous. They assured me it was my mother's time anyway and that the 2 hour delay from having to see those other minor patients did not really contribute to her death. But I wish people would stop wasting ERs with non-emergencies!!!
People in Augusta also need to realize how good they really have it. For those who sit in the overcrowded ER waiting rooms and complain about the wait, check out the 12-24 hr waits in other cities. Usually in Augusta, they are seen within 4-6 hrs and that is on a bad day. People need to learn how to take care of themselves and quit relying on the ER. They don't have a magic pill that will cure colds or stomach viruses. Rest, fluids, and sometimes a pain reliever is all you really need. The BIG problem with that is people then would not be able to get that golden work excuse. Get real!! The labor laws state that you can miss up to three days before you have to produce a work excuse. Prevention is also the best medicine. See a doctor regularly. No excuses because there are many programs in Augusta for those who have no insurance, and for those on Medicaid you are assigned a doctor that you can use instead of the ER. Medicaid needs to get on board and start penalizing or charging their recipients for outward abuse of the system. USE YOUR RESOURCES WISELY BECAUSE THEY MAY NOT ALWAYS BE THERE....
A disabled loved one has been rushed to the ER in an ambulance on more than one occasion and has also been driven by a family member. These were true emergencies. Frustration is rampant among these people who truly do have an emergency and are forced to wait until others without an emergency are seen. Something should be done to penalize the ones abusing emergency rooms for everyday routine illnesses which could have been taken care of at a doctor's office or clinic during regular hours. When you have an ill family member you learn very quickly that when what you percieve to be a life threatening situation occurs, you always call an ambulance as your loved one might not have the time to wait for others who are at the ER manipulating the system.
A great many of the people who fill the emergency room with non-emergency visits have some form of insurance and could actually go see their regular care provider if they just would. They go to the ER as a matter of convenience for themselves, or because they cannot get in to see their provider immediately. I recall a particular situation where the mother brought a child to the ER at 10am because when she called the pediatrician they told her to come to the office at 2pm. The child had nothing more than a cold. Typical problem. Unfortunately her insurance, MEDICAID, does not penalize the user in any way for misuse of resources.
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