Trying to pinpoint the exact causes for the current critical state of this country’s emergency rooms would be exhausting at best and would most likely yield no definitive culprit, but rather a combination of various economic and social shortcomings. Job losses that include loss of medical insurance, exhausted ER medical and administrative personnel and the increasingly high number of illegal immigrants all culminate at one intersection that spells poor medical attention, up to and including deaths that could have - and should have - been prevented.For many, were it not for local emergency rooms, there would be no access at all to medical attention. Doctors have been turning away patients - even those who’ve been loyal to their physicians for years - when they’re unable to pay for an office visit. Most would far prefer visiting their family doctors over a hospital emergency room. Aside from the rapport doctors and patients establish over time, it’s far less expensive. Still, with more doctors adopting the practice of “no pay, no visit”, it’s forcing even more people into already-overburdened emergency rooms.

Fewer staff members, including doctors and nurses, less training for those whose tasks include discerning which patients’ needs are more urgent and too, the possibility of these staff members who are doing the work of two or three and becoming burned out combines with tragic results. There have been deaths reported while patients waited for hours to see a doctor, medical emergencies that became more critical and dangerous with each passing hour and even patients who were treated for the wrong illnesses. These situations often result in medical malpractice suits. In our society, it’s these lawsuits that are often the catalysts for change. With no solutions on the horizon nor any indication of collective improvements throughout our country’s medical emergency services, it’s clear advances will only be made when those we trust with our health and the health of our family members begin to redefine what quality health care should encompass.

Unfortunately, the trends are indicative of further breakdowns in the medical sector of our society. Many hospitals are closing maternity wards and even their emergency rooms. This can only mean further problems for all of us. It’s estimated that nearly 20% of hospital emergency rooms have closed their doors in the past five years. If we thought it was standing room only before, those left to pick up the slack due to a neighboring hospital’s decision to close its doors will find themselves in one of the most volatile and unpredictable settings found anywhere in America.