The busiest ERs in Delaware County came out of Crozer Health.
Now that it’s closed, the county’s two remaining emergency rooms at Main Line Health’s Riddle and Trinity Health’s Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital are seeing many more patients.
Riddle Hospital in Media, for example, has seen a 40 percent increase in emergency room patients, writes Sarah Gantz and Lizzie Mulvey for The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Both Riddle and Mercy Fitzgerald in Darby have seen a rise in emergency room visits since 2022 when Crozer owner Prospect Medical Holdings closed Delaware County Memorial and Springfield hospitals.
Between 2021 and 2023, emergency department visits at Crozer declined by 9.3 percent, while visits rose at the two other hospitals.
Wait times at Riddle, Mercy Fitzgerald, and Lankenau Medical Center have also been increasing since 2021.
“The trend is, unfortunately, expected to continue,” said Main Line Health spokesman Larry Hanover said.
Main Line Health and Trinity are expanding virtual services, hiring additional primary care providers, increasing urgent care options, and redirecting emergency room patients who don’t require in-person care to other services.
Trinity has been coordinating across its hospitals to ensure it has the necessary staff and supplies to treat an increased number of patients.
Find out more about Delaware County’s emergency room situation in The Philadelphia Inquirer.
