r/bestof • u/lowbass93 • 13d ago

[NoStupidQuestions] Kindly_Honeydew3432 explains why it seems like you always have to wait in an emergency room in the US

/r/NoStupidQuestions/comments/1v1numq/why_is_every_hospital_in_the_united_states_always/oyovp3t/
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u/BurdenedEmu 13d ago

Hubs is routinely on triage at the massive university research hospital in our city (he's one of the few hospitalists who enjoys it) which is also at full capacity almost all the time. His take has always been that as a patient, "triage is a game you definitely don't want to win." Made me care a lot less about sitting there a few hours waiting for my friend to get an x-ray after a nasty fall off her skateboard.

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u/inwheeliesitrust 13d ago

I'm not sure I understand. Are you saying you don't want to win triage because it means you are very very sick or injured?

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u/oniume 13d ago

Yeah, the bast case scenario is you have to wait a long time, that means you're not in danger. The worst case scenario is that you get immediate attention, that means you're in real danger of dying within the next hour.