A M B U L A N C E   D I V E R S I O N S

SFGH Ambulance Diversions

“When the Emergency Department cannot handle additional patients, all ambulances in the City are put on diversion: that is, they are sent to other hospitals. In 1996, diversions occurred at 1% of the time; in September 2000, the rate climbed to 45% and averages 30-35% currently. [In 2006 the diversion rate was approximately 20%.]
"All departments [at SFGH] are understaffed, but the Emergency Department is critically understaffed.…patients admitted from the Emergency Department often must be treated in hallways for days while waiting for beds... ”
          May 17, 2001, UCSF Academic Senate Clinical Affairs Committee report,           San Francisco General Hospital Crisis: What Are The Academic Impacts?

SFGH Helipad would increase Emergency Room Overcrowding
Helicopters bringing more patients from surrounding counties (see Level of Care) would increase the diversion of ambulances carrying San Francisco residents. A helipad at SFGH would REDUCE emergency room service for San Franciscans.

Out-of-County patient transfers should continue to fly to the Level One Trauma Care hospitals in Palo Alto, Sacramento and San Jose, which can more readily handle extra trauma patients.  These Level One Trauma Centers do not additionally serve as the County Hospital for their respective regions, as does SFGH, and therefore overcrowding is not such a problem.