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The Business of Health Care Report
Today's topic is overcrowded emergency
departments and the ripple effect caused throughout health care. According to the latest national figures,
emergency department visits are up 20 percent in this country. Locally, the 13 hospitals in
Texas Health Resources - that's the Harris Methodist, Presbyterian and Arlington Memorial
hospitals - have seen the same trend with 26,000 more emergency department visits in 2002
than the year before. 2003 numbers aren't yet available, but a similar increase is
expected. So, what's behind this steady
increase? First, many of those visits were from
patients without a true emergency. These are often people who have not established a
relationship with a primary care physician. Or, it may simply be a matter of convenience.
The growing number of dual-earner families and single-parent households places a strain on
parents to find time for doctor visits during regular office hours. Financial issues also can drive people
in emergency departments. When those with Medicaid or Medicare coverage can't find providers
who are willing to accept them as patients, the emergency department seems the solution.
And, for those with no insurance, the hospital emergency department can become their main
health care resource. Combine these issues with the country's
aging population, a shortage of nurses and the decrease of emergency departments nationally
by 15 percent since 2001, and it's easy to see how something must change. Hospital emergency departments represent
a critical entry point to our health care system, and their misuse can create a bottleneck
for true emergencies. Congress, the state legislature, physicians and hospitals must find a
way to work together to address this problem before more hospital emergency departments
succumb to the crush of overcrowding. For Texas Health Resources
and its family of hospitals - Harris Methodist Hospitals, Presbyterian
Healthcare System and Arlington Memorial Hospital - I'm CEO
Doug Hawthorne
with "The Business of Health Care Report" on NewsRadio 1080 KRLD.
©
2003 Texas Health Resources |
I'm Doug Hawthorne, President and CEO of Texas Health Resources, with
"The Business of Health Care Report" on 