It is the system that is “failing to cope,” not the emergency department

The implication that our difficult choices are made as a result of a lack of "compassionate and thoughtful care" is hard to stomach. In the current system of triage and rationing, doing the right thing for a person whose needs fall outside the mandate of the provider means not doing the ri...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Canadian Medical Association journal (CMAJ) 2019-04, Vol.191 (14), p.E401-E401
Main Author: Campbell, Samuel G., MB BCh
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cross-Over Studies
Emergency medical care
Emergency Service, Hospital
Emergency services
Home Care Services
House Calls
Humans
Internal Medicine
Letters
Medical personnel
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Summary:The implication that our difficult choices are made as a result of a lack of "compassionate and thoughtful care" is hard to stomach. In the current system of triage and rationing, doing the right thing for a person whose needs fall outside the mandate of the provider means not doing the right thing for someone else who has a right to expect care in the place specially designed for that purpose. At this time, the weight of this decision seems to be thrust most notably on the emergency department. The emergency department is exactly that--a specific department with a mandate to provide care to people with acute, unexpected and time-sensitive health care needs.
ISSN:0820-3946
1488-2329
DOI:10.1503/cmaj.71641