Development of Consensus Statement on Definitions for Consistent Emergency Department Metrics

Abstract

One of the Emergency Nurses Association's (ENA) top three clinical priorities is crowding in the emergency department (ED). Crowding, which is defined as an excessive number of patients, was brought to the forefront of health care discussion via the 2006 Institute of Medicine report The Future of Emergency Care. 1 Institute of Medicine Committee on the Future of Emergency Care in the United States Health System. Hospital Based Emergency Care: At the Breaking Point. Institute of Medicine, National Academies Press, Washington, DC2007 Google Scholar Crowding is becoming progressively worse as the current recession creates additional pressure on our already strained health care system. Whether it is state funding cuts that result in closing psychiatric care facilities, individuals losing health care coverage, or individuals not being able to afford the medications that they or their families need, all of these situations result in more people coming to the emergency department for their health care of last resort. Response to: “Development of Consensus Statement on Definitions for Consistent Emergency Department Metrics”Journal of Emergency NursingVol. 38Issue 6PreviewI am writing with regard to the article “Development of Consensus Statement on Definitions for Consistent Emergency Department Metrics.”1 I work in a 28-bed, Level III trauma center north of Houston. Our department sees 90 to 120 patients daily, and we continue to have patients leaving without medical screening examinations as we remain saturated. Most of our beds remain occupied with patients holding for admission or with psychiatric patients boarding in the emergency department for 12 to 48 hours awaiting psychiatric placement. Full-Text PDF