reported at two local
facilities from Feb. 3-5
Emergency rooms handle
cases during job action
No major problems
reported at two local
facilities from Feb. 3-5
By linda denicola
Staff Writer
CentraState Medical Center in Freehold Township was geared up to handle an influx of emergency room patients during last week’s physicians’ job action, but it was pretty much business as usual. The same was true at Bayshore Community Hospital, Holmdel, with the exception of Feb. 3, the first day of the job action.
"We saw a significant increase in patient volume in our emergency department on Monday, a moderate amount on Tuesday and normal activity on Wednes-day," said L. Scott Larsen, director of emergency medicine for Bayshore Community Hospital.
"Most of the increase in patient volume was attributed to minor illness and injury and did not result in excessive wait times for individuals because we opened additional treatment areas and provided additional staffing," Larsen said.
According to a CentraState Medical Center spokeswoman, the physicians’ work stoppage did not have much of an impact and none of the surgeries or procedures that were scheduled were canceled during the three days when many New Jersey doctors closed their offices to protest what they said are skyrocketing malpractice insurance premiums.
Jim Goss, vice president of public relations and marketing at CentraState, said the 15/30 guarantee that has been in place for several years was suspended Feb. 3-5.
He explained that policy, saying, "Anyone coming into the emergency room will be seen by a nurse within 15 minutes of registering and examined by a doctor or nurse practitioner within 30 minutes.
"Very few people have put in a claim. We fulfill that goal almost every day, but because of the potential influx of patients during the three-day work stoppage they have suspended that program," he said.
Physicians throughout New Jersey closed their offices between Feb. 3-5 in an unprecedented response to what some are calling a malpractice insurance crisis. Doctors, especially obstetricians and surgeons, wanted to draw attention to the rising cost of malpractice insurance and to urge state legislators to impose a $250,000 cap on non-economic awards in proven cases of malpractice.
The job action involved most of the 450 doctors who hold admitting privileges at CentraState. The hospital supported the job action by providing a bus for the doctors and staff members who participated in a march on Trenton on Feb. 4. Besides the march in Trenton, there was a rally at Jersey Shore Medical Center, Neptune, on Feb. 3 and demonstrations at the offices of key law makers.
Discussions on ways to address the physicians’ malpractice insurance situation are continuing in the state Legislature.