Access block can be managed.
Hospitals cannot manage their emergency patients when there is significant access block. There are solutions that should be implemented but require national leadership to be effective. These solutions include an immediate increase in the number of acute hospital beds, improved coordination and increased community capacity to manage medical patients with complex conditions outside acute public hospitals, improved hospital processes, and better standardisation of treatment within emergency departments. There is little evidence that telephone triage, ambulatory care clinics or disaster management techniques, including ambulance diversion, reduce access block.
School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia. peter.cameron@med.monash.edu.au
Peter A
PA
Cameron
Anthony P
AP
Joseph
Sally M
SM
McCarthy
D000553:Ambulatory Care; D001315:Australia; D003153:Community Health Services / Q000600:supply & distribution*; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital; D006291:Health Policy; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006742:Hospital Bed Capacity; D006801:Humans; D009520:New Zealand; D010360:Patient Transfer; D014218:Triage