A 75-year-old Japanese man died after he was refused at 25 hospitals. MSN reported that he tried to admit himself into their emergency room 36 times over two hours but hospitals said there weren't enough beds or doctors to help him.
MSN reported that the man lived alone near Tokyo and called an ambulance when he was having trouble breathing in January. Paramedics came to the home but were told by 25 hospitals that they couldn't accommodate him.
The man lived in the city of Kuki which is in the Saitama prefecture.
"The ambulance eventually made a 20 minute drive to a hospital in neighbouring Ibaraki prefecture, but the man was pronounced dead shortly after arrival. The cause of death has not been made public," reported MSN.
Jiji Press who was one of the paramedics on the scene said he had never seen "a patient being rejected so many times" to MSN.
Isciencetimes.com reported that as the man's condition got worse, paramedics even attempted to call the hospitals multiple times. They eventually got the man to a hospital in the Ibaraki prefecture.
Isciencetimes.com reported that he could have survived if he received proper treatment and sited incidinces in the past where a similar thing has occurred.
"In 2009, an elderly man required urgent medical attention after he was struck by a motorcycle. The man had to wait for at least 90 minutes before an ambulance reached him. Fourteen hospitals refused to admit the man due to a shortage of equipment and staff. Eventually, the victim died from shock caused by loss of blood," reported Isciencetimes.com.
Health Insurance Carrier reported that more than 14,000 patients were turned down three or more times because of overcrowded hospitals in the year 2007, reported Isciencetimes.com.
"Former Japanese Health Minister Yoici Masuzoe told Health Insurance Carrier that a major cause of hospital overcrowding is the increasing amount of elderly patients in the country as people in Japan live longer lives," reported Isciencetimes.com.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
