And to quote one of the reader comments from the article: "This is ridiculous.Union Hospital is closing very soon and Columbus Hospital in Newark is in danger of closing if there are no takers.Premiums are through the roof. Would someone please fix our health care system." BD
New Jersey hospitals lack an adequate number of staffed inpatient beds to keep up with patient demand, leading to overcrowding in emergency rooms and frequent ambulance diversions, a report released today found. Conducted by researchers at Rutgers University's Center for State Health Policy, the report found that the stress on capacity is so bad - especially during peak periods like flu-season - that hospitals in the state would have an extremely difficult time responding to a major health disaster without displacing existing patients.
Report: NJ hospitals are short on beds - Breaking News From New Jersey - NJ.com
And the hospitals are doing their best...with picture boards with those who do not speak English as well...BD
RENTON, N.J. (AP) — With more ill and injured people unable to speak English, hospitals, clinics and rescue squads are turning to picture boards to bridge the communication gap with easily understood images.
The large, double-sided panels let patients point to icons showing their problem — such as pain, a burn, breathing trouble or a fall — as well as the part of the body that is affected. They also can point to their native language in a list so an appropriate interpreter can be located.
At University Hospital in Newark, up to 15 percent of patients speak Spanish, Portuguese or another language besides English, said triage nurse Robert Cagadoc. Since getting the picture boards last month, he's used them a couple times every shift to help patients arriving in the emergency department.
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jQr3mVdgQVyiQjGEGRW2rgOSD4rA
Is there a picture to show what method of payment they are using?
ReplyDeletewhy are u dancing around the fact that the "...ill and injured uable to speak English," are ILLEGAL. No need to be nice here. Let's call it for what it is - plain and simple ILLEGAL. These people should be validated as US citizen before treatment - forget payment here. If they can't produce proof then report them to DHS or INS.
ReplyDeleteWe have our share here in California too, something we all deal with unfortunately as hospitals are cutting back in many areas too.
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