David Rawnsley Be thankful if you have to wait, it means you're not about to die.
David is one of over 30,000 people to comment on this social video, helping to spread the message about life and death in an Emergency Department.
Within 24 hours of posting on SA Health’s facebook page, the film had been viewed over 2 million times and within a week, 7 million times.
So far the post has 10.8 million views and continues to grow each day, fuelled by 100,000 shares. The reach of more than 20 million people is eighteen times our target audience - the adult population of Adelaide, South Australia. Clearly our message has resonated with a worldwide audience.
But it is the 50,000 comments and 500k reactions that most clearly demonstrate the importance of using social media to create advocacy with this campaign. At a time when “join in the conversation” has become a cliché, this campaign has created a platform for genuine comment, complaint, explanation and debate. The general public have been forthcoming in their criticism of waiting times and a lack of government funding for hospitals while clinical staff from around the world have countered with first hand experiences of how challenging and frightening working in an ED can be. While the web-film may be a dramatised account of aggressive behaviour, their stories are not.
The overriding outcome of this exchange is frank and illuminating account, direct from the clinician’s mouth, on why EDs are sometimes slow to help low priority patients.
And they make no apology. Why should they? They’re busy saving lives!
While the proposition of ‘waiting isn’t an emergency’ was initially challenged, ensuing interactions between the public and ED staff saw that perception shift in the most fundamental of ways. With many members of the public concluding that… “if your waiting, you’re one of the lucky ones…”
Pamela Ann If people stopped using the ER as a doctor's office, there would be a lot less waiting time.
Joseph Del Tin Triage allows patients that need help first to be treated first.
Tuan Nhat Nguyen Waiting is good. It means that you are not going to die. You should feel sorry for the one, who they wheel in and treat first.
Dennis Gare I tip my hat to all those who work in the ED. Under pressure on the front line, dealing with problems that are never easy. I couldn't do it, the ED staff have my utmost respect
Kizmine Lei Rivas-Acejo I hope this is a wake up call to anyone who doesn’t know the situations inside ER...
Emmalee Howell You guys don't get enough credit for doing what you do. Thank you.
David Rawnsley Be thankful if you have to wait, it means you're not about to die.
Beth Arsenault BRILLIANT!! As an RN who specialized in the ER for 13 years, THIS IS brilliant, amazing, TRUTHFUL and way overdue
