N.S. emergency units clog up as patients have nowhere to go because of full beds, experts say – CBC

High demand, often from patients without doctors, has ERs struggling to keep up

Jan 12, 2023

With a renewed scrutiny on Nova Scotia’s emergency departments, experts say the problems of overcrowding and long wait times stem from issues elsewhere in the health-care system.

Dr. Robert Martel, who has spent most of his career as an emergency room physician, said departments across the country are overcrowded, staff are overworked and resources are stretched.

He said this situation has been a long time coming for Nova Scotia, as other problems in the health-care system trickle down to emergency departments.

“Politicians and those that were supposed to be making informed decisions really didn’t make the right ones,” Martel told CBC Nova Scotia News At Six on Wednesday.

“And as a result, we find ourselves in a really bad situation right across the country, and by the time we crawl out of this, there’s going to be a lot of tears shed.”

Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/emergency-room-problems-system-experts-1.6710948