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Author: Christine Au
Medical Student- OMS-II
Western University of Health Sciences, College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific
AAEM/RSA Social Media Committee
While the demand for emergency medical service has dramatically increased throughout the last five years, patients are finding that they are spending a great deal of time waiting to be seen.[1] In fact, emergency department (ED) visits have doubled the increase in population rates from 1997-2007.[2] On average, patients wait for two hours and 15 minutes from the time of arrival to the time they are admitted, or to the time of discharge.[2] However, this data point varies depending on the state the patient is being seen in, patient demographic, as well as the complexity of a patient’s case. In some of the more extreme cases, patients may wait an average of four hours or more before being seen by any healthcare professional.[1]
