BILL NO. 135

(as introduced)

1st Session, 64th General Assembly
Nova Scotia
71 Elizabeth II, 2022

 

Private Member's Bill

 

Emergency Department Standards Act

 

Susan Leblanc
Dartmouth North

First Reading: April 5, 2022

Second Reading:

Third Reading:

 

An Act Respecting
Emergency Department Standards

Be it enacted by the Governor and Assembly as follows:

1 This Act may be cited as the Emergency Department Standards Act.

2 The purpose of this Act is to adopt standards regarding access, triage and site performance for emergency care at all hospitals with an emergency department.

3 (1) Except as provided under subsection (2), words and expressions used in this Act have the same meaning as in the Health Authorities Act.

(2) In this Act,

(a) "above census" means the temporary accommodation of patients of an emergency department other than in the emergency department, where those patients were not admitted to the hospital;

(b) "criteria for the declaration of a Code Census" means a National Emergency Department Overcrowding Score of greater than 148.

4 A health authority shall publish for each hospital with an emergency department, at least monthly,

(a) the number of occasions on which the criteria for the declaration of a Code Census have occurred;

(b) the number and percentage of patients

(i) not transferred into the care of the hospital from the care of paramedics or other first responders within 20 minutes of arrival at the hospital,

(ii) with a Canadian Triage Acuity Score of 1, 2 or 3 whose length of stay in the emergency department of the hospital was longer than eight hours,

(iii) with a Canadian Triage Acuity Score of 4 or 5 whose length of stay in the emergency department of the hospital was longer than four hours,

(iv) placed above census and where those patients were kept,

(v) who were admitted to the emergency department and did not have a primary-care provider,

(vi) who were admitted to an inpatient unit and remained in the emergency department for longer than 24 hours from the time of their first triage assessment, and

(vii) who left the emergency department without being seen by staff following initial assessment and triage; and

(c) whether site performance has been affected by any disaster or mass-casualty events.

 

---

This page and its contents published by the Office of the Legislative Counsel, Nova Scotia House of Assembly, and © 2022 Crown in right of Nova Scotia. Created April 5, 2022. Send comments to legc.office@novascotia.ca.