A study conducted by DREES sheds unprecedented light on the functioning of French emergencies.
It is an unprecedented inventory of French emergencies: the DREES (1) yesterday presented the results of a survey carried out on June 11, 2013 among public and private emergency hospital structures (734 out of 736 structures in all. ). The last study of this type dated back to 2002, but it had only been carried out on 150 departments at that time.
The Drees tells us that the median time to assess the situation of patients arriving at the emergency room is 4 minutes (after registration). 70% are seen within ten minutes and 80% before 20 minutes. Pick-up and administration of care occurs an average of 30 minutes after arrival, according to the report.
The waiting time in the emergency room is however the most frequent criticism made of these structures: many parents know the pain of spending several hours in the waiting room before their child is treated. Dr. Albert Vuagnat de la Drees recognized during the presentation of the results an “increase in the wait” during the “most crowded” hours (afternoon and evening), a period which also varies “according to the workforce”.
A simple consultation lasts 76 minutes
For the duration of the consultations, the time is very variable, depending on the care required. While the median time for a simple consultation is 76 minutes, it drops to 95 minutes if a specialist’s advice is needed. If an additional examination is required, such as an X-ray or ultrasound, for example, the consultation lasts 106 minutes. If a blood test is done, the median consultation time is 168 minutes (nearly 3 hours).
The Drees reveals that nearly two-thirds (62%) of patients go to the emergency room on their own or on the advice of a loved one. They are in fact only a quarter (24%) to go there on the advice of a doctor and 15% on those of the Samu. Only 1% of patients are brought directly by Samu and Smur (emergency medical service).
Trauma is the leading cause of consultation, whether in children under 15 (43%) or adults (31%), as specified Le Figaro.
(1) Department of research, studies, evaluation and statistics
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