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Let’s ask Jo! She’ll know!
Q: A friend recently had a medical emergency and spent half of her three-day hospital stay in the Emergency Department—on a gurney in the hallway! What's the deal?
A: An isolated event has become a trend when it gets named. This practice has been known as "patient boarding" for several years. If no inpatient rooms are available, the patient is "boarded" in the ER, perhaps in an exam room or, yes, in the hallway. For many obvious reasons, this is not ideal.
Is it possible to prevent "boarding"?
The blame lies with the usual suspects: too many patients, too few workers. Staff shortages and recent restrictions on Urgent Care access have further burdened ERs, and many hospital beds—and even wings—are now shuttered due to a lack of nursing and support staff. First, it's important to properly assess whether an issue is Urgent, Emergency or This-can-wait-until-my-PCP-is-available. I'm also a big believer in making sure your PCP (you have one of those, right?) is in the loop anytime there's a visit to the ER. That team approach helps determine the best autonomous treatment for a patient. Remaining safe throughout this long-range crisis of access is mostly about each one of us making the best use of the resources that are available.
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