It's no surprise that hospitals across the developed world are losing beds. Here's an article (from the BBC) that spins it as a good thing. The glorious teaser:
People are getting better care despite NHS bed numbers falling by a third in the last 20 years, health managers say.
Ouch. The article brings up one key issue related to running wards at 100% full: MRSA and other antibiotic-resistant superbugs have a better environment in which to spread.
The other issue, of course, is surge capacity. While it's great that outpatient care has kept more people at home, the idea that it's hard to find a bed on any normal day at the hospital does not bode well for pandemic flu response.
Oh well, there are always DMATs, right? Thousands and thousands of 35-member DMAT teams in abandoned Wal-Mart parking lots across the country. Encouraging, no?
Technorati Tags: hospitals, surge capacity, healthcare
Comments