ERI overloaded A&E department - your views online

Edinburgh Royal Infirmary A&E department 'overloaded' as NHS Lothian chiefs apologise for patients' long waits while ambulances queue outside

The accident and emergency department at the Royal Infirmary Edinburgh in Little France is being overwhelmed

Louise Dunn

That's because the hospital is too small for the number of people that now live within the area it covers. Also no beds elsewhere for patients that are medically fit to be discharged and need carers for them to go home. Not enough rehab beds for patients that need it.

Angie Brown

If doctors were seeing patients as they were before Covid, A&E wouldn't be so busy. Folk going to A&E because they can't get a dpctor’s appointment. When are doctors surgeries going to run again as they used to?

Debra Davies

Nothing new then. I was taken by ambulance to ERI about 18 months ago and had to sit on a chair in a corridor for four hours, then finally on a trolley for another four hours before I even got into a cubicle and saw a doctor. Turns out I had pleurisy and a broken rib. Meanwhile there was a drunk sleeping it off in one of the cubicles right in front of me while I sat in excruciating pain. I heard the nurses talking about the drunk man and saying they wish they could just turf him out but they had a "duty of care."

Carolyn Fielding

If there were more general practitioners and people could see them, then the accident and emergency departmentwould be fine. People sitting snogging on seats don't need to be visiting A&E.

Lorraine Blyth

There are always horror stories, but I ended up at hospital, was triaged within 20 minutes of arrival and seen by a nurse practitioner about 45 minutes later. I was then transferred to a cubicle where I was hooked up to all sorts of monitoring and put on a drip and given medication and samples taken. Also chest X-ray and a CT scan. All in all I was 6hrs 20mins from arrival to leaving the department. Couldn’t fault any of the staff. I was diagnosed with pleurisy, chest infection, fluid on both lungs, cracked ribs and reduced kidney function.

Henrietta Paterson

Open up the community hospitals. Take the pressure off the Royal. East Lothian community hospital is fabulous, but I think an A&E would definitely benefit the locals of East Lothian.

George Bathgate

Normally the waiting room has patients that are not a serious emergency. There are GPs or some of them could be treated at home with a plaster. If people would use the minor injuries instead we wouldn’t have this problem. Remember the A&E is only for emergencies.

Jenny Lee

My husband had to attend A&E on Tuesday after a fal. During our wait hubby was triaged by a nurse, sent for CT scan, had an ECG and eventually saw the docto. The department was heaving. Nobody likes waiting, but unfortunately there are always people who need attention first. The staff work their socks off. As a retired nurse I was full of admiration for the staff working under such pressure as we witnessed. Well done to them all and thank you for the care given.

Thomas Ryan

The issue here is people phoning emergency ambulances who don’t need them or turning pp in A&E when they don’t need to be there. The dept isn’t the issue, it’s the size of it Vs the population of Edinburgh now.

Barbara Manson

They need to open the Western General Hospital A&E and not minor injuries, this would take a lot of pressure off the ERI.

Jean Irvine

Western should have another A&E department. The ERI is too small for the Edinburgh population which is growing fast. Another solution is needed and its not St John's.

Paula Pops

Here’s one of the issues - people call ambulances who don’t need them. Folk clog it up with minor things that can wai. Once the NHS folds and it’s privatised, we will see how busy it is then.

Caroline Hill

Having spent all weekend in A&E with my husband, we have seen first hand how the staff are on their knees and just how much pressure they are under! Despite lengthy waits to be seen, they were caring, attentive, professional and apologetic for the long wait! My heartfelt thanks go out to them all and the amazing job they are doing.

Painting town purple

South Queensferry shop owner “really disappointed” after being told to repaint bright purple exterior

Gino Di Placido

Completely stifling peoples creativity and flair, it looks beautiful to me..

Kate Marshall

That’s sad. It looked pretty. Nothing wrong with brightening things up

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