With a Windsor-Essex winter in full swing, hospitals are feeling the pinch from patients seeking emergency care.
Dr. Wassim Saad, the chief of staff at Windsor Regional Hospital, however, believes that pinch does not have to hurt emergency department employees. The increase of patients wanting treatment for flu-like symptoms, along with a recent rise of trauma incidents, is being blamed for a surge in wait times at the two Windsor campuses.
Dr. Saad said he wants residents to understand that, more often than not, their flu-like symptoms do not need a visit to the emergency department.
"A lot of this could be dealt with very easily by educating the public, letting them know that a lot of these symptoms are self-resolving, they do not need to come to the emergency room for flu-like symptoms. Cough, shortness of breath, runny nose, or stuffy head," said Saad.
Saad added that the advice of staying home when ill goes a long way toward recovery, not just for the patient but also for the public. It is also not necessary to go to the hospital to get a doctor's note if an employer requires one. Saad suggested that patients visit their primary physician or walk-in clinic if they need an excuse.
A recent rise in vehicle collisions has played a significant role in increasing pressure on the emergency department. If the situation is critical enough to require an all-hands-on-deck approach, Saad said that could also compromise efficient ED care.
"A lot of resources are taken up when a trauma comes in," said Saad. "Most of the time, it is a life-threatening situation. As a result of that, resources are shunted away from the other patients in the department, and that increases the wait time."
At the monthly meeting of the hospital board Thursday afternoon, members looked at a report prepared by the Ontario Hospital Association. While saying that Ontario hospitals are the most efficient nationwide, it also pointed out that long wait times in the ED are likely to get longer.