the Poitiers University Hospital is testing a device to relieve congestion in its emergency department

Every day, an average of 130 patients are admitted to the emergency room of the Poitiers University Hospital (Vienne). The figure has doubled in 20 years. In an attempt to stem the increasingly systematic recourse to emergencies, the CHU has set up a room for regulating calls, the SAS, for a care assistance service. “It is certain that the creation of the SAS will not replace the shortage of doctors that may exist, both in city medicine and in general medicine, or in hospital medicine. On the other hand, it helps us to optimize our human resources to correctly direct patients.“, explains Dr. Xavier Lemercier, regulating general practitioner.

The staff present 24 hours a day in the room has increased from three to nine people. The treatment of absolute emergencies is identical. In the other cases, in particular the 30% of situations that are not emergencies, the patient who dialed 15 is offered a teleconsultation. The CHU waiting room is thus relieved of congestion. In the afternoon of Thursday, June 30, the care of patients arriving at the emergency room was done in less than 20 minutes. Bed management is also centralized. Four people manage the 1,500 beds in Poitiers and the surrounding area. 18 departments are currently experimenting with these systems.