No quick fix for crowded ERs

Re: “Stop pointing finger at Barrette” (Letters, May 18)

Having spent over 20-plus years within the MUHC, in addition to the Jewish General and Saint Mary’s hospitals, I can confidently state that cuts imposed by Gaétan Barrette are to blame for problems in our healthcare system.

Can things be done more efficiently? Definitely.

Restructuring has its merit — but first there needs to be something to restructure. At present there exist gaping holes where care once was.

Nathan Friedland writes he has been in charge of as many as 24 beds. Apparently that is an acceptable nurse-to-patient ratio?

Yes, tests can be done on an outpatient basis. It may take months or years. I am on an 18-month wait list.

Definitely CLSC nurses can administer drugs at patients’ homes. I have an aunt still waiting for this service, four weeks post-op.

Post-op patients lingering too long in the hospital? Yes, we can be a bothersome bunch. I was instructed to empty my own drains post-op as the nurse had no time. (Maybe she was tending to the other 23 beds.)

Nurses using cellphones on the floors during work hours? Who has time?

Yes ERs are crowded, but this problem isn’t about to go away. As more people wait for appointments, tests, surgeries, treatments, evaluations, follow-ups and referrals, their medical conditions deteriorate — and this tends to land them in the ER for urgent attention.

A trip to the ER has evolved into the most effective method to obtain care of any kind, and with any luck, it won’t be too late.

Heidi Crux, Châteauguay