With such a workload, it is necessary to assess and provide assistance to hundreds of patients of varying complexity – from life-threatening conditions to health issues that can be addressed at a primary healthcare facility or on a planned basis. Medical professionals remind that the Emergency Department is intended for situations requiring immediate assistance, and choosing the appropriate service helps ensure faster care for those who need it most, according to a press release from the Vilnius Republican Hospital.
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“In the Emergency Department, we face very different situations every day. Some patients arrive due to severe injuries, acute illnesses, or conditions where every minute counts. Others come with health problems that are not urgent and could be resolved at the primary healthcare level. Our goal is for every person to receive the necessary help as quickly as possible, but it is very important that emergency resources are primarily available to those who need them immediately,” says Paulius Uksas, head of the Emergency Department.
Currently, there is an especially heavy workload in traumatology, therapy, and surgery departments. There are shifts when traumatologists see more than 170 patients per day, therapy doctors up to 100 patients, and nearly 70 people wait for a surgeon’s examination. On the busiest days, a new patient is registered in the Emergency Department every 3-4 minutes. Most patients undergo diagnostic tests, which increases the workload for the hospital’s radiology specialists, who perform an average of 320 X-ray examinations and 120 CT scans per day.
“When we receive several hundred patients per day, each additional visit contributes to the overall waiting time, so it inevitably lengthens. We ask patients for understanding – waiting in the Emergency Department is not because the medical staff are not working, but because help is first provided to patients with more severe conditions,” says the department head.
In the Emergency Department, patients are assessed based on the severity of their condition, not on arrival or waiting time. This means that a patient who arrives later may be examined earlier if their health issue is more dangerous. Patients with the most severe conditions, corresponding to the 1st emergency care category, are admitted immediately; 2nd category patients within 10 minutes; 3rd category within 1 hour; 4th category within 2 hours; and 5th category patients, who are not in need of emergency care, must be examined within 24 hours.
P. Uksas also points out that as patient flows and work intensity increase, emotional tension rises as well.
“We understand that waiting when a person is worried about their own or a loved one’s health is not easy. However, at that time, our staff work very intensively, make difficult decisions, and put in every effort to provide the necessary help to each patient. Therefore, we expect patience from patients and their relatives, as well as respectful and constructive communication, which helps us maintain focus and ensure safe care,” emphasizes the head of the Emergency Department.
According to him, the choice of patients to go directly to the hospital’s Emergency Department is often influenced by broader healthcare system circumstances – it is not always possible to quickly see a family doctor or specialist because clinics also enter holiday periods or lack the necessary doctors.
“We do not aim to discourage people from seeking help. On the contrary – we want to help understand where in a specific situation help will be provided most appropriately and quickly, because our Emergency Department alone cannot solve the issue of service availability across the entire region,” says P. Uksas. “It is sincerely frustrating to see patients who, due to huge flows in the reception, are forced to wait for more than an hour. A person should receive the necessary help on time and where it can be provided most effectively.”
For non-life-threatening health issues, it is first recommended to contact your family doctor. Outside working hours, you can contact on-call primary healthcare facilities or consult by phone with Emergency Medical Service specialists at number 113, who will help assess the situation and advise where to go.
The Emergency Department is not intended for chronic disease diagnostics, planned examinations, or long-term treatment planning. These issues are addressed during consultations with a family doctor or specialist. The Emergency Department primarily assesses and treats acute, urgent conditions, so arriving for planned health problems will not allow for the same consultation as provided in a clinic. In other words, going to the Emergency Department does not replace a planned consultation and does not shorten the waiting list for a specialist.
It is recommended to go to the Emergency Department when:
- health condition suddenly worsens significantly;
- there is a threat to life or important bodily functions;
- a severe injury occurs;
- there is severe chest pain, shortness of breath, loss of consciousness, heavy bleeding, or other acute symptoms.
“Our message is simple – we are always ready to help. But it is important for each patient to choose the most effective way to get help. Appropriate help at the right time means that emergency medical resources must be used where they are most needed. This way, we can help those who need assistance here and now more quickly,” emphasizes Paulius Uksas, head of the Emergency Department.
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