2024-05-09 03:31:28
BOLZANO. Sunday 7 April a 90-year-old patient spent 13 hours in the San Maurizio emergency room before being treated. She was on a stretcher, she was moaning. She went in at 1pm and was discharged at 2am.
Around her there are other similar situations, always with frail elderly people in pain. Infinite wait until she found three broken ribs and a vertebra. The daughter who was close to her and who eventually received an apology from the staff for the patience shown says that the system needs to be reorganised: «Now we have a splendid structure, but the emergency service must be able to work better. For everyone, especially the elderly.”
The councilor asks for data: «Those over 70 must be protected»
Health Councilor Hubert Messner wants to intervene as soon as possible. «A few days ago we met. I asked to have all the data on emergency room accesses in the last year, divided by patient age, access codes and average wait with a targeted report on the over 70s. Fragile patients. We need to know if they wait six, eight or ten hours and with what code. I want to intervene as soon as possible.”
The unions are calling for the silver code
It is to be hoped that a silver code will be activated as soon as possible. For their part, the trade unions CGIL (Alfred Ebner), CISL (Annarita Montemaggiore), Uil (Mauro Baldessari) and Auser (Maurizio Surian) – a voluntary association committed to active aging – are calling for rapid interventions already introduced in other situations Italian: «A solution could be to include, for example those over 75 registered with less urgent codes, in a preferential path. It’s not about jumping the queue, but about shortening it given that very often these are fragile patients.”
An apology from the hospital. April 7th? Overworked
«We are deeply sorry for what happened on Sunday 7 April and we apologize to the 90-year-old patient who found herself waiting 13 hours in the emergency room, but the staff was dealing with various emergencies and it was not possible to intervene sooner» . Stefania Bertolami, deputy director of the Bolzano district, admits “the times are difficult to accept for a person of such an advanced age”. And she explains that «the management in close agreement with the management and Elena Carion, head of the emergency room, is committed to optimizing the emergency and emergency procedures, especially for older patients».
But why did the times extend abnormally on April 7th? «A check revealed that from the afternoon to the late evening the staff worked continuously to assist 5 patients in code red, in danger of life, and another 7 with injuries that compromised their vital functions (code orange). Furthermore, as often happens on weekends, in the time slot between 1pm and 1am the following morning the emergency room faced around 80 visits. The patient – he continues – was nevertheless subjected to an initial series of diagnostic-instrumental tests useful to verify her conditions”.
«Two intermediate re-evaluations followed, one around 5pm and the second around 7pm. The checks by a doctor took place around 9pm. After which the lady was subjected to X-rays, CT scans and laboratory tests. In the meantime, for the most precise possible evaluation and to identify the most appropriate treatment, other specialists were also consulted. Let’s admit – concludes Bertolami – times that are difficult to accept for a person of such an advanced age”.
2024-05-09 03:31:28