California's Emergency Departments: System Capacity and Demand

Publication Date: April 2002

Publisher: California HealthCare Foundation

Author(s): Policy and Management University of Southern California. Center for Health Financing

Research Area: Health

Type: Brief

Coverage: California

Abstract:

This issue brief examines the capacity of and demands on California's emergency departments (EDs). Findings indicate that the perception that emergency department closures and increasing patient volume are the sole causes of ED overcrowding may be inaccurate. Although the number of hospitals with emergency departments has declined over the past decade, California's hospitals have added considerable bed capacity to the state's ED system. In fact, growth in ED bed capacity has outstripped California's population growth, leading to an increase in the number of ED beds per capita. In addition, California's trauma center system has remained remarkably stable during the study period and has even expanded slightly. ED visit data for the past decade do not offer proof of a capacity crisis that can be attributed to volume increases or higher per capita utilization rates. However, significant volume growth in 1999 and 2000, coupled with higher patient acuity, may indicate that the state's hospital-based emergency medical services system is nearing its limit to absorb continued increases in demand, particularly in some facilities or communities.