u/DeterToscha

My son's an RMO in the ER of a metropolitan hospital. He saw a patient who'd waited 8 hours to see a doctor because of her broken foot. She was referred by an experienced local GP. My son put the moon boot on her and sent her home, suitably supervised by his registrar. Why do GPs send simple cases that they can fix easily to the ER knowing that the ER is backed up and will require extensive waiting times? Do patients wait long hours at ERs because they do not know that the GP can handle his or her issue easily?