This is an excellent question.

In 1994, I broke my arm, obviously went to the ER. The only patient they considered higher priority was a potentially dying baby. I can respect that and did even as a kid at the time. (Unrelated to the rest of the comment, but the doctor who ended up repairing my arm told me, a seven year old with a broken arm, "stop being a crybaby." What a jerk.)

In 2022, I broke my ankle. I waited for hours before being admitted. After the EMTs dropped me off, the hospital wouldn't even give me water or painkillers because "we're not sure how the doctor is going to want to treat you." (I think they were referring to the method of administering anesthetic.) In my several hours in the waiting room in a wheelchair, I didn't see anyone else getting admitted. However, that was during the peak of COVID, so it's fair to say things could have been going on behind the scenes; still, communication with waiting patients could have been better. I saw at least two patients give up and leave. I was definitely the nurses' only advocate in the waiting room. (I didn't cry that time. Guess I learned my lesson.)

Then in 2023 I had a nosebleed that wouldn't stop. I walked into the ER literally holding a mixing bowl of blood under my nose and was admitted immediately, I think without even any paperwork (though my wife might have filled that out after the nurses took me in). After I was admitted, they ignored me for an amount of time I couldn't quantify ... Until I started passing out, at which point I suddenly became a priority. (During the wait, one nurse listened to me and laughed as I compared my bowl to how they called Lucifer in Supernatural, then walked away.)

I started this post thinking I had a point, but I think I kind of lost it remembering all that stuff as I typed it. However, the vast majority of medical staff I've met are good, competent and compassionate people. Communication is often a problem but I doubt that's due to the front line.

I have no idea why a potential stroke victim would be left unattended that long. My best guess is, if it was during COVID, all of the hospital's beds were just full so they literally had nowhere to put that person; however, I don't know enough about hospital administration to make any useful comment on it.

One last point: while everything I said is true to the best of my memory, I left out a lot of details in the interest of brevity I didn't quite manage. If you got this far, thanks for reading my rambling, pointless comment!