"Six hours is absurd" — Patients describe long night-time waits on Finland's A&E wards
A patient visiting an emergency room between 10pm and 7am in many parts of Finland can expect to wait for an average of between five and six hours.
Nighttime patients in Finnish emergency rooms endure lengthy waits, averaging between five and six hours, according to Yle's investigation using data from regional healthcare authorities. The worst wait occurred in Turku, where it took 6 hours and 29 minutes, while Jyväskylä had the shortest at 4 hours and 49 minutes. Yle visited Jorvi hospital in Espoo, where the 6-hour, 4-minute wait was among the longest in August.
Patients, such as Marcos Wichert and Heini Nurmi, expressed frustration with the waits and concerns about receiving timely care. Emergency room physician Kimmo Suojanen explained that some wait time is unavoidable due to necessary examinations and consultations, but noted that conditions at Jorvi have improved since previous years.
Former HUS chief of operations Maaret Castrén emphasized the need to address the issue of long waits, advocating for moving patients through the system within four hours.
Written by urgent.news from Yle News Finland's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
