Emergency department in need!

According to these studies, the emergency departments are overrun by patients mainly due to the lack of hospital capacities, internal work processes, but also due to the behavior of the patients themselves.Many do not actually require emergency treatment, it was estimated that between one third to a half of all ED patients qualify as outpatients and could be treated accordingly.

Walk-in patients particularly contribute to the emergency departments’ overcrowding. They arrive independently without medical admission and often need treatment for only minor problems, such as colds or musculoskeletal complaints. Usually, these are younger patients without their own family doctor and who tend to misdiagnose their condition.

On the one hand, these walk-in patients generate high costs for the health care system because the treatment in the emergency room is considerably more expensive than with a private doctor. However, on the other hand, they take up precious time and waste resources that are needed for acute emergencies. If an emergency department is overcrowded and its staff overworked, the risk of misdiagnosis and delay in treatment of acute patients increases. Consequently, this can lead to a worse prognosis and higher mortality rates for patients.

For this reason, many countries are actively working on relieving and optimizing emergency care in hospitals by expanding capacities and improving structures and processes. The co-operation and affiliation of practicing physicians is also promising. Emergency doctor’s offices, with extended opening hours and spatial proximity, could take care of some of these patients and relieve emergency departments. To change the behavior of walk-in patients, some countries are also discussing fees, which could be reimbursed in the event of an actual emergency. But such measures may lead to patients not seeking medical care for financial reasons, even when in the case of an actual emergency. For this reason, informing and educating patients is key in easing the burden off emergency departments.