I went to the ER in the US for an infected gallbladder full of stones, it was so bad I had to be hospitalized for almost a week. I was in the ER waiting room in the fetal position for literally hours after a nurse took my vitals before a doctor saw me, there were a couple other people in the waiting room. I nearly died. Over $20k bill after insurance.

I've also gone to the same ER with relatively mild UTI, I peed blood and fainted from the sight but otherwise didn't really need the ER. They saw me immediately, and it was very busy.

Triage is a thing, whether they do it properly is another thing.

you are probably there for a runny nose or something equally silly.

It's silly to go to the ER for a runny nose if you have better options, like a family doctor with whom you can get appointments within a few days. Sadly, a lot of Americans don't have health care coverage and have to go to the ER for "silly" things because they don't have other options.

Very much this.

I've had seven heart attacks.

When I go in with heart attack symptoms, which I've had to do a handful of times (that it turned out not to be a heart attack, I mean) - I don't like going in there and them getting me back quickly. It means things are potentially bad. heh.

I understand that nobody likes waiting, and i've waited before and it sucks. But it sucks less than needing to be taken back quickly, really.

Exactly my brother came in with a cut bleeding all over the ER, he needed like 12 stitches. They took him right away. All he remember from that day(he was pretty out of it) was some woman complaining that she been waiting for hour why his getting to go first.

While his blood spilling out on floor she had the gull to say that.

Same with chest pain. If you go to the ER complaining of chest pain most times they take you straight back. Happen to me was sick told my boss chest was hurting he suggested hospital cause you know heart attack. Er by house so went they wisk me straight back.

Funny not funny story about that visit. One thankfully no heart attack. But they did find a mass on my lungs ( lucky turn out to be acid reflux due to a cough I had) anyway when he sees this he says. "Might be cancer but I don't know. " scare the shit out of me. I just replied "well if you don't know don't say that. "

They scheduled me a specialist but it was a 2 month wait, by time they saw me the mass was gone. That doctor figured it was the acid reflux got in there. Good news is got on meds for that and no more acid reflux for me.

Went for heart problems. Waited 12 hours in an empty waiting room.

I think wait times were better. And now they're terrible, but what you say plays a big role. And as such, we've seen urgent care businesses (hate saying that) explode. There's one every mile where I live, including pediatric urgent care. And I'm not complaining. I'll complain maybe about costs, but the idea of this stepped-down, non-emergent care, is a great way to deal with the problem.

Now, make it free* (except I pay taxes already so just use those).

People go to ER or get a prescription here sometimes. Then complain about the wait 😭😭😭

Canadian here its not silly, you can wait 12+ hours for very serious conditions (as I have once, I realize this is anecdotal).

This doesn't mean its worse than in the states. I understand on average we are doing better healthcare wise than the states (interms of cost and mortality). However for the well insured in the states I believe the care is better.

Yet another issue with being so close to the states our health care suffers because our corrupt politicians see your system and drag us closer to it. You all also attract doctors away from us.

I wish I could agree with you, but one time I sat in an emergency room for 12 hours bleeding from my throat into a bowl that was overfilling with my own blood before I got properly triaged and scheduled for emergency surgery.