1. What is the problem facing the ER staff in terms of the discrepancy between the ideal and actual conditions?
2. How might the hospital staff go about resolving the problem or problems described by Sue Abrams?
3. For what reasons should the ER staff and the hospital administrators care if some of the visitors to the emergency room are really not experiencing an emergency?

During her twenty-minute rest break at 3 A.M., Sue Abrams, M.D., rolled her eyes when Ken Raskins, a hospital administrator, asked her how she was doing. “It’s real nice of you Ken, to drop by the emergency room to get a feel for what life is like in the trenches,” said Sue.
“You know it. The emergency room doctors and nurses know it. And the rest of the ER medical and support staff know it. We’ve got the same enormous problem in our ER that is sweeping the country. The ER has lost most of its original purpose, and the change is choking the staff.”