If the “burnt out” attrition of emergency physicians, the shortage of emergency nurses, the unfilled emergency medicine residency positions, the prevalence of errors (here and here), the persistence of misdiagnosis, or the news headlines (here, here, and here) are relevant indicators, then the emergency department (ED) could be considered a failed - or at least… Continue reading Fitness Functions
Tag: Public Good
Tragedy of the ED Commons
In his landmark article, Tragedy of Commons (1968), Garrett Hardin asks, “Is ours a finite world? [If so], a finite world can only support a finite population.” In Hardin’s parable, a single group of herders shares a common pasture. The pasture is large enough to support many animals, but not infinitely many. Rationally, each herdsman… Continue reading Tragedy of the ED Commons