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Crowded ERs diverting ambulances

Quality Improvement Monitor, February 10, 2006

 

Crowded ERs diverting ambulances

 

About 500,000 ambulances were turned away from their original hospital destinations because of overcrowded emergency departments in 2003, according to a study published in the February Annals of Emergency Medicine.

 

The study's findings were based on responses from 405 hospitals - about 10% of the nation's hospital ERs, reports the Associated Press.  Ambulances accounted for 14% of ER traffic in 2003. A hospital that decides to divert ambulances can often cause a chain reaction with nearby hospital emergency departments, according to the study.

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