PORTLAND (AP) – Emergency rooms in Maine hospitals are crowded with patients whose ailments would be better addressed at a doctor’s office, the Maine Health Data Organization suggests in a new list of top emergency department diagnoses.
An analysis of data from 36 hospitals from 2003 to 2005 found that back aches and dental problems made the top 20 ailments, along with sprains and fractures typically associated with emergency departments. Many of those problems could have been prevented with routine care, but patients lack insurance or access to doctors in their area, physicians say. So they end up at emergency rooms, adding to wait times and contributing to the rising costs of health care.
“It’s just further evidence about how messed up things are with the overall health care delivery system,” said Al Prysunka, the executive director of the state data organization. “People don’t get the appropriate dental and medical care they need, and they end up at one of the most expensive places to treat it.”
At Inland Hospital in Waterville, upper respiratory infections such as colds and laryngitis were the third most common ER diagnosis in 2005, accounting for 5 percent of cases.
Cases involving sprains, strains and superficial injuries such as contusions were more numerous.
Dental problems such as cavities, gingivitis and abscesses were the fourth most common ER diagnoses at Inland, and ear infections were No. 7.
Outside of larger cities such as Portland and Bangor, there are fewer doctors to see patients, causing many people to go to emergency rooms, said Dr. Stephen Michaud, president of the Maine Hospital Association.
“There are so many rural areas in Maine and you don’t have a lot of physician coverage especially after hours,” he said. “You go to the city and more urban areas and you have multiple physicians for certain specialties.”
Dr. Charles Pattavina, a spokesman for the American College of Emergency Physicians, said that most visits to the ER are appropriate, noting seemingly mundane conditions such as headaches can belie more serious problems.
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