CA hospital forced to reduce wait times in anticipation of H1N1 patient surge

Patient Safety Monitor Alert

October 28, 2009

County officials forced Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center to reduce its wait times by transferring patients this past week, reports the Los Angeles Times. The number of patients waiting to be seen at the hospital's emergency department can grow up to 100 and they can wait for as many as 24 hours to be seen, reports the Times. The county expects an even larger number of patients to seek medical help at the ED as the H1N1 flu continues to infect people in the area.

County officials told the hospital's administrators to redirect patients seeking care at the ED when more than 13 are waiting for beds, or when the wait time is more than 11 hours. Officials say that in recent months many patients have been seeking care at the ED because losing their jobs led to the lack of health insurance, which has added to the wait.