Patient dies after rejection by 7 hospitals
THE ASAHI SHIMBUN (2008/10/23)
A pregnant woman who was denied entry to seven hospitals despite being close to the due date and with suspected bleeding in the brain died early this month after giving birth, Tokyo metropolitan government officials said.
The 36-year-old woman had to wait about 75 minutes to be admitted to the hospital where she underwent an operation.
The baby is healthy, they added.
The metropolitan government is investigating the events leading to the woman's death.
The woman, who was nine months pregnant, was brought to her obstetrics and gynecology clinic in Koto Ward by ambulance on Oct. 4 with a severe headache and other ailments, the officials said.
Her doctor suspected she was suffering from a cerebral hemorrhage. Around 7 p.m., the doctor began searching for hospitals that could perform an emergency operation.
All seven hospitals contacted refused to accept her, including the Metropolitan Bokutoh Hospital in neighboring Sumida Ward, which is designated by the metropolitan government as a medical center that deals with high-risk pregnant women and newborns 24 hours a day.
The hospitals said the doctors were busy with other patients or that they lacked available beds.
Around 7:45 p.m., the doctor again called the Bokutoh Hospital, which accepted her.
After arriving at the hospital at 8:18 p.m., the woman gave birth through Caesarean section and underwent surgery to remove hematomas caused by the cerebral hemorrhage.
She died three days later.
The Bokutoh Hospital previously had two doctors on duty, but the shortage of obstetricians has forced the hospital to have only one doctor on duty for weekends and national holidays since July.
Oct. 4 was a Saturday.
When only one doctor is on duty, the hospital generally does not accept patients in emergency situations.
When the hospital received a second request from the clinic, it summoned another doctor to the hospital.
Hospital officials said they were not informed of the woman's cerebral hemorrhage when the first request was made.
According to a survey by the Fire and Disaster Management Agency, about 47,000 women were rushed to maternity hospitals in 2007.
In 1,084 cases, the woman was rejected by at least three hospitals. One woman was denied entry 42 times.(IHT/Asahi: October 23,2008)
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* Emphasis mine; and they don't mention in this article the last year's similar case in Nara... but here it is: EDITORIAL: Death of rejected patient
So, we can see that in Japan, there's a 2.22% chance of you (or your friend / wife in labor) to be denied emergency medical assistance by the account that doctors are busy or there aren't enough beds. If anyone thinks the latter is the case, just fuckin' Google it!
THE ASAHI SHIMBUN (2008/10/23)
A pregnant woman who was denied entry to seven hospitals despite being close to the due date and with suspected bleeding in the brain died early this month after giving birth, Tokyo metropolitan government officials said.
The 36-year-old woman had to wait about 75 minutes to be admitted to the hospital where she underwent an operation.
The baby is healthy, they added.
The metropolitan government is investigating the events leading to the woman's death.
The woman, who was nine months pregnant, was brought to her obstetrics and gynecology clinic in Koto Ward by ambulance on Oct. 4 with a severe headache and other ailments, the officials said.
Her doctor suspected she was suffering from a cerebral hemorrhage. Around 7 p.m., the doctor began searching for hospitals that could perform an emergency operation.
All seven hospitals contacted refused to accept her, including the Metropolitan Bokutoh Hospital in neighboring Sumida Ward, which is designated by the metropolitan government as a medical center that deals with high-risk pregnant women and newborns 24 hours a day.
The hospitals said the doctors were busy with other patients or that they lacked available beds.
Around 7:45 p.m., the doctor again called the Bokutoh Hospital, which accepted her.
After arriving at the hospital at 8:18 p.m., the woman gave birth through Caesarean section and underwent surgery to remove hematomas caused by the cerebral hemorrhage.
She died three days later.
The Bokutoh Hospital previously had two doctors on duty, but the shortage of obstetricians has forced the hospital to have only one doctor on duty for weekends and national holidays since July.
Oct. 4 was a Saturday.
When only one doctor is on duty, the hospital generally does not accept patients in emergency situations.
When the hospital received a second request from the clinic, it summoned another doctor to the hospital.
Hospital officials said they were not informed of the woman's cerebral hemorrhage when the first request was made.
According to a survey by the Fire and Disaster Management Agency, about 47,000 women were rushed to maternity hospitals in 2007.
In 1,084 cases, the woman was rejected by at least three hospitals. One woman was denied entry 42 times.(IHT/Asahi: October 23,2008)
-----------
* Emphasis mine; and they don't mention in this article the last year's similar case in Nara... but here it is: EDITORIAL: Death of rejected patient
So, we can see that in Japan, there's a 2.22% chance of you (or your friend / wife in labor) to be denied emergency medical assistance by the account that doctors are busy or there aren't enough beds. If anyone thinks the latter is the case, just fuckin' Google it!
