Officials at local hospitals report few problems accommodating patients since Pennsylvania doctors began a "political action" protest Monday to petition against rising malpractice premiums.
"We have really not seen a substantial increase in patients," said Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania Director of Administration and Finance in Emergency Medicine Sue Canning. "But we are bracing ourselves -- this action is supposed to be a week long."
According to The Philadelphia Inquirer, 2,000 doctors, nurses and supporters did not go to work Monday and instead, participated in a rally at the Valley Forge Convention Center organized by the Politically Active Physicians Association.
Although some HUP physicians are involved in the protest, they have made accommodations for their patients during their absence, according to Penn Health System spokeswoman Rebecca Harmon.
"We believe that some are participating, but those individuals have made arrangements for patient access to care and that was the foundation," Harmon said.
But, perhaps because many of the protesting doctors are private practice rather than salaried physicians, officials at other local hospitals also reported no significant problems in accommodating patients on Monday, according to Canning.
Canning added, however, that hospital officials are paying extra attention to the number of patients admitted to the emergency room.
"We are just watching very carefully to see any change in demand," Canning said.
It was a "normal business day as far as volume in the ER," said Hahnemann University Hospital spokesperson Molly Trit. "And of the business that was there, nobody referred to their doctor not being available."
Officials at Temple University Hospital and the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, located next to HUP on 34th Street and Civic Center Boulevard, stated they have also documented normal patient levels.
"I had checked our emergency room, and there was no influx in patients" due to the absence of private practice physicians in their offices, said Temple University Health Sciences Center Public Relations Associate Vivica Aycox.
According to Canning, the biggest concern the hospital has currently is the potential that problems could arise due to fluctuations in weather conditions.
"The most common kind of thing is a significant weather change, like during the blizzard, people had a hard time getting to a doctor or emergency department," Canning said, adding that a potential problem could be increased patient volume stemming from a "significant heat-related emergency."
With Thursday only the fourth day of action, though, Canning cautioned that it may take longer to see a reaction in terms of patient increases.
Earlier this year, doctors in New Jersey staged a similar strike, and according to Canning, New Jersey hospitals did not report an increase in patients until a few days after the strike began.
