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FL may abandon plan to send emergency patients to closest specialist

Hospitalist Leadership Connection, December 26, 2007

Palm Beach county, FL, has spent two years developing a plan to divert any emergency patients who need specialty care to one of 13 area hospitals where the necessary specialist may be at that time. However, the Sun-Sentinel reports that the proposal could be prevented by physicians or state regulators.

The region's system currently is like many other emergency routing systems in the country. The patient is brought to the closest facility and often must wait there if the required specialist is not at that facility. The first step in creating this new system is to build a Web-based schedule that could direct emergency rescue crews to the correct facility. Many physicians feel that creating a call list of specialists is a daunting task, and also finding a compensation system that pleases all involved will be a problem.

 

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