The government must take action to relieve unprecedented overcrowding in hospital emergency rooms (ER), the Taiwan Society of Emergency Medicine said on Saturday.
The group said in a statement that if the problem worsens it could lead to the resignation of emergency medical workers, which would affect patient safety and healthcare quality, and weaken the nation’s healthcare capacity.
There are too many people in emergency rooms who are not being transferred after being admitted, forcing critically ill people to remain in ERs, the group said.
Photo: CNA
The root cause is insufficient inpatient beds, which could be due to a nursing shortage, forcing hospitals to close off beds or maintain an imbalanced or insufficient allocation of beds, it said.
In the short term, the government could require hospitals to open beds in other departments to more flexibly admit patients when ERs are overcrowded, which would improve the management of beds in intensive care units to ensure reasonable allocation, it said.
Hospitals should also increase the number of emergency medical staff when ERs are overcrowded, which would improve the quality of healthcare and help prevent burnout, it said, adding that hierarchical diagnosis and treatment systems should be better implemented.
Photo: CNA
Long-term solutions include setting up and funding an ER emergency situation response mechanism, so that hospitals can collaborate in solving the problem, the association said.
The government should also consider adjusting the National Health Insurance payment for ER visits to encourage hospitals to admit critically ill patients and ensure their safety, it said.
Other solutions include promoting alternative options for ER hospitalization, such as acute hospital care at home programs or outpatient parenteral antibiotic therapy models, it said, adding that the government should also set up a mechanism to monitor the number of available inpatient or ER hospital beds, so it can adjust policies and resource allocation.
Minister of Health and Welfare Chiu Tai-yuan (邱泰源) yesterday thanked the Taiwan Society of Emergency Medicine for its suggestions and ER medical personnel for their hard work.
The ministry has gathered local health department officials, representatives of medical centers and physicians’ associations to discuss ER overcrowding, Chiu said.
The ministry has asked hospitals to readjust the proportion of inpatient and ER beds, to hopefully add more ER beds, he said.
However, it would be a challenging task for hospital superintendents, as many people require hospitalization, he said.
The ministry has also asked hospitals to increase ER personnel levels to ease their workload and pressure, while the ministry would continue to work with the National Health Insurance Administration on how to retain ER staff, through better wages or other methods, he said.
Chiu said the ministry and physicians’ associations have been promoting hierarchical diagnosis and treatment systems, encouraging people with mild symptoms of illnesses such as influenza to first seek medical attention at clinics or local hospitals, and go to larger hospitals through referrals.
Additional reporting by CNA
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to make advanced 3-nanometer chips in Japan, stepping up its semiconductor manufacturing roadmap in the country in a triumph for Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s technology ambitions. TSMC is to adopt cutting-edge technology for its second wafer fab in Kumamoto, company chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) said yesterday. That is an upgrade from an original blueprint to produce 7-nanometer chips by late next year, people familiar with the matter said. TSMC began mass production at its first plant in Japan’s Kumamoto in late 2024. Its second fab, which is still under construction, was originally focused on
DETERRENCE EFFORTS: Washington and partners hope demonstrations of force would convince Beijing that military action against Taiwan would carry high costs The US is considering using HMAS Stirling in Western Australia as a forward base to strengthen its naval posture in a potential conflict with China, particularly over Taiwan, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday. As part of its Indo-Pacific strategy, Washington plans to deploy up to four nuclear-powered submarines at Stirling starting in 2027, providing a base near potential hot spots such as Taiwan and the South China Sea. The move also aims to enhance military integration with Pacific allies under the Australia-UK-US trilateral security partnership, the report said. Currently, US submarines operate from Guam, but the island could
EMERGING FIELDS: The Chinese president said that the two countries would explore cooperation in green technology, the digital economy and artificial intelligence Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday called for an “equal and orderly multipolar world” in the face of “unilateral bullying,” in an apparent jab at the US. Xi was speaking during talks in Beijing with Uruguayan President Yamandu Orsi, the first South American leader to visit China since US special forces captured then-Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro last month — an operation that Beijing condemned as a violation of sovereignty. Orsi follows a slew of leaders to have visited China seeking to boost ties with the world’s second-largest economy to hedge against US President Donald Trump’s increasingly unpredictable administration. “The international situation is fraught
CSBC Corp, Taiwan (台灣國際造船) yesterday released the first video documenting the submerged sea trials of Taiwan’s indigenous defense submarine prototype, the Hai Kun (海鯤), or Narwhal, showing underwater navigation and the launch of countermeasures. The footage shows the vessel’s first dive, steering and control system tests, and the raising and lowering of the periscope and antenna masts. It offered a rare look at the progress in the submarine’s sea acceptance tests. The Hai Kun carried out its first shallow-water diving trial late last month and has since completed four submerged tests, CSBC said. The newly released video compiles images recorded from Jan. 29 to
RSS