In 2023, the A&E department had 106,847 calls on its facilities and in the first four months of 2024 alone, it served 36,571 patients.
Records show that the department, which cannot accommodate the number of patients with its stretcher capacity, received 143,418 calls for service in 16 months.
While data shows that the number of emergency applications is increasing exponentially every day, it is noted that the number of third-country nationals applying to the emergency department has also significantly increased.
On the other hand, it has been observed that the burden of inadequacy in outpatient clinics is also being placed on the emergency department. Data shows that in 2023, 56,355 people were recorded as non-urgent cases coded ‘Blue’; the emergency department has become a primary healthcare service.
Specialist doctors racing against time in the emergency department point out that patients with outpatient clinic issues like cough are applying to the emergency department, causing evening hours to be especially busy due to these complaints.
The difficulty in getting outpatient clinic appointments, combined with economic hardship, leads many non-urgent patients to seek services directly from emergency departments, which also creates a foundation for violence.
The emergency department is extremely busy due to reasons such as those who cannot get leave from work during the day, those who have difficulty getting outpatient clinic appointments, those who think their procedures are done faster in the emergency department, and those who go to the emergency department hoping to get a report just to avoid going to work. This situation prevents real emergency patients from benefiting adequately from the emergency department.
Critically Ill Patients Suffering
Immediate intervention is provided in cases like ‘heart attack,’ ‘stroke’, ‘burns’, ‘traffic accidents’ in the Emergency Departments. Patients who should be seen in outpatient clinics going to the emergency department cause critical patients to suffer.
Examined data highlight two striking points regarding emergency department applications. While figures show that approximately 50% of patients going to A&E do not require urgent intervention, patients who could easily find solutions to their problems in hospital outpatient clinics during working hours are applying to the emergency department. Another point is that a significant portion of these applications occurs after working hours, especially between 17:00 and 22:00.
Thousands of Non-Urgent Cases
Records show that the department, which cannot accommodate the number of patients with its stretcher capacity, received 143,418 calls on its service in the last 16 months.
According to data examined by Yeniduzen, 74,119 people applied to A&E even though they were not urgent. Records show that 8,873 people were recorded as ‘priority’ patients, while 2,720 people were treated as ‘very urgent.’ In the same records, 38,260 people were ‘important’ patients over 16 months, while the A&E Department treated 19,446 ‘injured’ individuals.
The workload of the Dr. Burhan Nalbantoğlu Emergency Department, where hundreds of patients apply with different complaints every day, has been exponentially increasing over the years.
Physically, the area is narrow, and the bed capacity is insufficient; it is stated that between 15,000 and 17,000 people per month and between 600 and 800 patients per day apply to the Emergency Department. 50% of these are non-urgent patients.
Between 08:00 and 16:00, 200 patients go to the Emergency Department, while after 16:00, the number increases exponentially to 600 to 800. Patients who could be treated in outpatient clinics preferring the emergency department due to outpatient clinic-related issues also increase the workload.
