Nurses' perception of emergency department overcrowding: A qualitative study

One of the most important wards of the hospital is the emergency department (ED). Due to the increasing number of referrals, overcrowding has become a significant problem. It means an increase in patients' referrals and swarms at the ED, limiting their medical staff access. This study investigates the nurses' experiences and perceptions about the reasons for ED overcrowding.

Twelve emergency nurses were purposefully selected to take part in this study. Data collection was through face-to-face semi-structured interviews until data saturation was finalized. Data analysis was conducted using Graneheim and Lundman's conventional content analysis.

Nurses' experiences with the reasons for ED overcrowding came into two main categories. The first was "increased referral to the emergency department," which had three subcategories: "increased referral due to health system reform plan," "increased referral due to corona pandemic," and "improper triage." The second was "increased patients' length of stay at the ED" with seven subcategories including "shortage of bed," "shortage of nursing staff," "lack of physical space," "turtle para-clinic," "on-call specialists' delay," "timely medical record documentation requirements," and "delaying in patients' transfer from the ED to the ward."

The results showed ED overcrowding is inevitable. Intentional or unintentional changes in the health system, such as implementing the health system reform plan or the corona pandemic, can also increase overcrowding. Findings showed ED overcrowding increased referrals and patients' length of stay. This study suggests the health system authorities pay more attention to this phenomenon and look for solutions.