Word: cared
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Dates: during 1990-1990
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...lungs. A thoracic surgeon was called in to locate the bullet, which had entered his Adam's apple and been deflected into his lung. Hospital officials figured that they would get roughly $71 from the state for treating the patient. The first two hours of his care had already cost...
...crisis is all the more ironic in light of the revolutionary advances in trauma care during the past decade. A generation ago, emergency rooms were dumping grounds for bad doctors and training grounds for young ones. But the experience of two world wars, Korea and especially Vietnam taught doctors that saving injured patients depended as much on speed as on skill. Doctors refer to "the golden hour" after a trauma, before irreversible shock sets in, when lifesaving treatment is most likely to succeed. Beginning in the early '80s, states organized themselves into trauma networks and began tailoring training programs...
...heart of the problem, health-care experts agree, is the absence of any national consensus or policy on how to care for the poor and underinsured. Many of those flocking to emergency rooms are working people whose employers are no longer able or willing to provide insurance. "The 9-to-5 executive with benefits can take time off to see his doctor," says Dr. Keith T. Sivertson, director of the Johns Hopkins emergency department in Baltimore. "The poor slob mopping the floor until 4 a.m. may be sick after work, yet has to be ready to go back...
...those neighborhoods that have functioning clinics, patients may still choose the emergency room because it is open 24 hours a day or because they think the care is better. At Chicago's Michael Reese Hospital, some pregnant women wait in the parking lot until they are close to delivery so they can be admitted through the emergency room. The deluge has forced most hospitals to adapt their primary-care systems. Triage nurses divide patients into two groups: the critically ill, who must be seen immediately, and the less serious cases, which can be sent to "urgent-care centers." For millions...
...even the best emergency department is a poor substitute for reliable primary care. Fearful of the harsh conditions and long waits at hospitals, people often put off treatment as long as possible. When they do show up at the emergency room, they are sicker than if they had had regular preventive care, and often require longer hospitalization -- which further ties up valuable beds. "The longer the length of stay, the higher the occupancy rate," says Kenneth Raske, president of the Greater New York Hospital Association, "and the more pressure on the emergency rooms." This is especially true of AIDS patients...