University Hospital Named to National Team to Work on ER Crisis
San Antonio Level 1 Trauma Center one of 10 sites chosen among 287 applicants

University Hospital’s extremely busy emergency department is a hub of innovation thanks to its selection to participate in a national learning network designed to find solutions to the growing emergency room (ER) overcrowding crisis.

University Hospital, the lead Level 1 Trauma Center for a 22-county area of Texas, was selected along with nine other hospital systems across the country to take part in the Urgent Matters program. Urgent Matters is an initiative launched by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) to help hospitals decrease ER overcrowding and raise awareness about the relationship between the serious strain on ER resources and the availability of low-cost primary care for the uninsured.

Across the nation, “Safety Nets” (local networks of providers of low-cost or free medical care to the uninsured and underinsured) are increasingly developing gaping holes in their availability of services. Patients without health coverage are “falling through these holes” in alarming numbers. Without access to primary care, uninsured people are forced to turn to emergency rooms as their only option for treatment.

Urgent Matters is based at the George Washington University’s Center for Health Services Research and Policy in the School of Public Health and Health Services. “We view these sites as real-world laboratories to develop models that can be replicated throughout the country,” said program director Bruce Siegel, M.D., M.P.H. “These ten communities and hospitals have stepped up to the plate to help ensure access to quality care for all their fellow citizens.”

In addition to University Health System, trauma centers in Boston, MA; Lincoln, NE; Elmhurst, NY; Atlanta, GA; Detroit, MI; Fairfax, VA; Memphis, TN; Phoenix, AZ; and San Diego, CA were named to this prestigious collaborative.

The program also included a report on San Antonio’s Safety Net prepared by George Washington University researchers: An Assessment of the Safety Net in San Antonio (pdf) The report provides background on low-cost or free health care available in San Antonio, describes the key characteristics of the populations served by Safety Net providers, and includes an analysis of key challenges and barriers for people trying to access these services.

More information about the program is available at www.urgentmatters.org.

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