Emergency room overcrowding is causing an ambulance to be diverted from one ER to another every minute, according to a study by the National Center for Health Statistics, which surveyed 10% of U.S. hospitals. The study, which did not report on the effects of ambulance diversion on patient outcomes, also found that once one hospital goes on diversion, nearby hospitals are also quickly unable to accommodate diverted ambulance transports, according to an AP story in the Washington Post.
