Health

‘The Pitt’ Captures the Real Overcrowding Crisis in Emergency Rooms

Published

1 year ago

April 10, 2025

‘The Pitt’ Captures the Real Overcrowding Crisis in Emergency Rooms

The emergency department waiting room was jammed, as it always is, with patients sitting for hours, closely packed on hard metal chairs. Only those with conditions so dire they needed immediate care — like a heart attack — got seen immediately.

One man had had enough. He pounded on the glass window in front of the receptionist before storming out. As he left, he assaulted a nurse taking a smoking break. “Hard at work?” he called, as he strode off.

No, the event was not real, but it was art resembling life on “The Pitt,” the Max series that will stream its season finale on Thursday. The show takes place in a fictional Pittsburgh hospital’s emergency room. But the underlying theme — appalling overcrowding — is universal in this country. And it is not easy to fix.

“EDs are gridlocked and overwhelmed,” the American College of Emergency Physicians reported in 2023, referring to emergency departments.

“The system is at the breaking point,” said Dr. Benjamin S. Abella, chair of the department of emergency medicine at Mount Sinai’s Icahn School of Medicine in New York.

“The Pitt” follows emergency room doctors, nurses, medical students, janitors and staff hour by hour over a single day as they deal with all manner of medical issues, ranging from a child who drowned helping her little sister get out of a swimming pool to a patient with a spider in her ear. There were heart attacks and strokes, overdoses, a patient with severe burns, an influencer poisoned by heavy metals in a skin cream.

Because this is television, many of the thorny problems get neatly resolved in the show’s 15 episodes. A woman who seems to have abandoned her elderly mother returns, apologizing because she fell asleep. Parents whose son died from an accidental fentanyl overdose come around to donating his organs. A pregnant teenager and her mother, at odds over a medical abortion, come to a resolution following a wise doctor’s counsel.

But over and over again, the image is of a system working way beyond its capacity. There is the jammed waiting room and the “boarders” — patients parked in emergency rooms or hallways for days or longer because there are no hospital beds. (The American College of Emergency Physicians calls boarding a “national public health crisis.”)

There are the long waits for simple tests. There is the hallway medicine — patients who see a doctor in the hallway, not in a private area, because there is no place else to put them.

And there is the violence, verbal and physical, from patients with mental problems and those, like the man who punched the nurse, who just get fed up.

“‘The Pitt’ shows the duress the system is under,” Dr. Abella said. “Across the country we see this day in and day out.”

But why can’t this problem be fixed?

Because there’s no simple solution, said Dr. Ezekiel J. Emanuel, co-director of the Health Transformation Institute at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine. The problem, he said is “multipronged and there is no magic wand.”

Part of it is money.

Having patients jammed up in emergency rooms guarantees that no bed will go unused, bolstering revenues for hospitals.

Then there’s the problem of discharging patients. Spaces are scarce in nursing homes and rehabilitation centers, so patients ready to leave the hospital often are stuck waiting for a space to open up elsewhere.

Schedules are another difficulty, said Dr. Jeremy S. Faust, attending physician in the Brigham and Women’s Hospital Department of Emergency Medicine. Many rehabilitation centers admit patients only during business hours, he said. If an E.R. patient is ready to be discharged to one during a weekend, that patient has to wait.

In “The Pitt,” as in real life, patients often show up in emergency rooms with problems — like a child with an earache — that a private doctor should be able to handle. Why don’t they just go to their own doctor instead of waiting hours to be seen?

One reason, Dr. Emanuel said, is that “primary care is going to hell in a handbasket.”

In many cities finding a primary care doctor is difficult. And even if you have one, getting an appointment can take days or weeks.

Many do not want to wait.

“The modern mentality, for better or worse, is: If I can’t get it now, I will look for other solutions,” Dr. Abella said.

That often means the emergency room.

Even building larger emergency rooms has not helped with the overcrowding.

Dr. Faust said that his hospital opened a new emergency room a few years ago with a large increase in the number of beds. A colleague, giving him a tour, proudly told him there was now so much space there would probably be no more hallway patients.

“I looked at him and said, ‘Bwhahahahaha,’” Dr. Faust said. “If you build it, they will come.”

He was right.

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Health

Cancer survivors may see surprising benefits from one specific exercise, study says

Published

2 hours ago

May 31, 2026

Press Room

Cancer survivors may see surprising benefits from one specific exercise, study says

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For many, surviving cancer comes with an automatic new lease on life but other survivors continue to experience physical and emotional challenges long after treatment ends.

Yoga may significantly reduce the insomnia, fatigue and mood disturbances many survivors endure after remission, a recent clinical trial found.

Mood disturbance and insomnia are “two of the most pervasive and troubling side effects experienced by cancer survivors for years after completing adjuvant treatments,” the researchers reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

SIMPLE DAILY HABIT MAY HELP EASE DEPRESSION MORE THAN MEDICATION, RESEARCHERS SAY

They noted that both symptoms can substantially inhibit survivors’ ability to perform everyday activities.

The study, funded by the National Cancer Institute, compared 204 cancer survivors receiving standard survivorship care alone with 206 survivors who paired standard care with the Yoga for Cancer Survivors (YOCAS) program. Most of the participants were female breast-cancer survivors.

A clinical trial showed that yoga may help ease symptoms cancer survivors experience after treatments. (iStock)

YOCAS is a four-week intervention that incorporates two types of yoga – hatha, which is traditional and more active, and restorative, which is more passive. Both forms involve slow, gentle movements, breathing exercises and mindfulness, according to the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), which published a news release on the study’s findings.

Participants in the YOCAS group practiced yoga, on average, for 180 minutes each week over the course of three sessions.

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At the end of the trial, the YOCAS participants reported overall improvements to mood, anxiety and fatigue, while the standard care group did not.

“Additionally, improvements in insomnia stemming from YOCAS yoga may be mediated by changes in overall [mood disturbance] and fatigue,” the researchers wrote.

“[The study is] an important advance because it offers survivors, who are likely already managing multiple medications, a non-pharmaceutical solution for reducing four different side effects at once,” Fumiko Chino, MD, a cancer researcher and associate professor in breast radiation oncology at MD Anderson Cancer Center, told ASCO.

Cancer survivors often continue to struggle with physical and mental-health challenges after the disease has been successfully treated. (iStock)

Timothy Pearman, Ph.D., director of supportive oncology at the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University, told Fox News Digital he was not surprised by the results of the study.

“Yoga is one of the most widely studied and validated interventions for managing cancer-related fatigue, mood disturbance and overall physical health,” Pearman said.

Pearman said his wife, Jenny Finkel, is a yoga teacher and received her continuing education at Duke University’s integrative medicine program, which focuses on yoga for cancer patients.

“There are now a number of cancer-specific yoga teacher training programs nationwide,” Pearman said. “Yoga is a wonderful thing because it is very modifiable, meaning that even for people who have significant physical impairment, the exercises can be modified so that anyone can participate.”

He added that yoga is affordable, too, because “all you need is a mat and someone to show you how to do it.”

Osteoporosis, an increased risk of cardiac problems and issues with balance and stamina are other physical symptoms related to cancer treatment that yoga can help mitigate, Pearman said.

Cancer survivors who took part in an average of three yoga classes a week for four weeks reported reduced anxiety and fatigue, according to a recent study. (iStock)

Shari Botwin, a licensed clinical social worker based in Pennsylvania, is a thyroid-cancer survivor who specializes in working with victims of trauma, including cancer. She turned to yoga months after her diagnosis and told Fox News Digital the practice has been “transformative.”

According to Botwin, cancer survivors she’s worked with have dealt with emotional challenges that affect their healing process, including depression and survivor’s guilt. In addition to the physical relief yoga can provide, she said it can also offer “a supportive environment of peers, some of which are cancer thrivers.”

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Botwin added that yoga can help survivors who have lost parts of their body reframe their thinking.

“It supports us into moving into a place of self-compassion rather than shame and self-hatred,” she said.

Yoga can help cancer survivors who struggle with guilt or shame to find a community of understanding peers, according to some experts. (iStock)

Almost any type of exercise can be beneficial for cancer survivors, Pearman said. He advises his patients to stick to the type of exercise they enjoyed prior to cancer.

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He also noted that free yoga classes geared toward cancer survivors are widely available through various non-profit organizations.

Teresa Mull is a freelance writer with the Lifestyle team at Fox News Digital.

Health

What to do if someone is having a stroke, after Jill Biden revealed debate-night fears

Published

12 hours ago

May 30, 2026

Press Room

What to do if someone is having a stroke, after Jill Biden revealed debate-night fears

Jill Biden says Joe’s debate performance made her wonder if he had a stroke

Former first lady Jill Biden revises her account of former President Joe Biden’s disastrous 2024 debate, now alleging she feared he was suffering a stroke. This new statement from the first lady contrasts sharply with her earlier public affirmations of his performance. Contributor Ben Domenech scrutinizes the timing and motivations behind this sudden shift.

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Former first lady Jill Biden has expressed her concerns about former President Joe Biden’s health status, noting that she feared he was having a stroke during a 2024 debate against President Donald Trump.

Biden struggled his way through the performance, with long periods of silence, confused facial expressions and stammered speech. In a recent interview with CBS, Jill Biden commented that she was “frightened.”

“I don’t know what happened,” she said. “I mean, when I watched it, I thought, ‘Oh my God, he’s having a stroke,’ and it scared me to death.”

JILL BIDEN SAYS SHE THOUGHT JOE WAS HAVING A STROKE DURING HIS DISASTROUS 2024 DEBATE PERFORMANCE

A stroke occurs when there is bleeding in the brain or when blood flow to the brain is blocked, according to Mayo Clinic.

Identifying a stroke may be difficult, as symptoms can vary.

Stroke symptoms can include balance loss, weakness, slurred speech, face drooping, confusion and severe headaches. (iStock)

The American Stroke Association (ASA) identifies the following key warning signs, using the acronym “B.E. F.A.S.T.”

B – Balance loss
E – Eye (vision) changes
F – Face drooping
A – Arm weakness
S – Speech difficulty
T – Time to call 911

In a situation in which someone could be having a stroke, “the only” thing to do is to call 911, Fox News senior medical analyst Dr. Marc Siegel told Fox News Digital.

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The doctor emphasized other symptoms to watch for, including weakness on one side, slurred speech, difficulty processing information and confusion.

The ASA also warns that severe headaches can also be a sign of stroke.

At the first sign of stroke, 911 should be contacted immediately, as 1.9 million brain cells die every minute that a stroke goes untreated. (iStock)

Siegel advised against giving the person an aspirin, as it could worsen bleeding in the brain if that is the cause of stroke.

With an ischemic stroke, that type of medication could be helpful.

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The ASA says 1.9 million brain cells die every minute that a stroke goes untreated, which means earlier treatment leads to higher survival rates and lower risk of disability.

“In medicine, we use the term ‘time is brain,’” Siegel said. “This means that the faster you bring the patient to the emergency room, the faster they can receive emergency treatment if indicated to reopen the blocked artery in the brain, if there is one.”

Brain imaging should be done within the first several hours after seeking medical attention for a stroke, according to a top physician. (iStock)

Brain imaging can also be done on arrival at the ER, which should occur within the first several hours, Siegel said.

Anyone who is experiencing a stroke should not drive themselves to the hospital, according to the CDC. Instead, the person should get a ride or call 911 — as treatment begins inside the ambulance.

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About 80% of strokes are preventable, the American Heart Association states.

Prevention includes managing high blood pressure, diabetes, atrial fibrillation and other risk factors.

One in four survivors have another stroke within the next five years, per CDC data, so those at higher risk should prepare a prevention and treatment plan.

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Fox News Digital’s Alexander Hall contributed to this report.

Angelica Stabile is a lifestyle reporter for Fox News Digital.