Rural hospitals are struggling in many areas, in part because the Critical Access Hospital (CAH) designation was created by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to make rural hospitals band-aid stations. CAH staff is there to triage patients and send most to specialists in metropolitan hospitals. As with many CMS schemes, all the CAH designation did was kill the effectiveness of many vital, necessary, and very good rural hospitals. Almost the first service to go is
Thank you for pointing out the struggles of rural hospitals. Having worked in a number CAH facilities, I would say that many nurses and especially ED physicians have become very skilled at taking care of seriously ill patients, if only because they have no other options. There are few accepting hospitals and few ambulances or helicopters available.
Thank you for pointing out the struggles of rural hospitals. Having worked in a number CAH facilities, I would say that many nurses and especially ED physicians have become very skilled at taking care of seriously ill patients, if only because they have no other options. There are few accepting hospitals and few ambulances or helicopters available.