Quote Originally Posted by Taz_Zoee View Post
I understand not turning people away, but they should take people in the order of the severity of their needs.
That's what the hospital did when I sprained my ankle years ago. I sat there for three hours. A baby that was dropped by an older sibling went in before me even though they arrived after me. I did not have a problem with that.
This from my friend who is a doctor at our local ER: They do take people back in order of the severity of their illness/injury. However, once taken out of the waiting room into the back for treatment, they now occupy a room/cubicle until their case is resolved and they are sent home. They can't be sent back to the waiting room.

So, for example, there are ten cubicles and ten people in the waiting room at 8 pm. They are all taken back to a room, and the one or two doctors start making the rounds, seeing them. They are there for minor complaints ... sore throat, cold, flu, etc. But it takes time to diagnose, doctors are very afraid of malpractice suits. In the meantime, other people have come into the waiting room. There is no room for them in the back, they have to wait until someone is finished and sent home, no matter how serious their case is. Now multiply this problem by ten or a hundred for a large city, and you see where it could lead.