San Diego County hospitals
Sharp Grossmont Hospital in La Mesa. Photo credit: Screen shot, Sharp.com

Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that Sharp Grossmont ranked among the hospitals with the lowest number of emergency room visits.

Sharp Grossmont Hospital had 104,986 emergency room visits in 2021, the 23 highest number among U.S. hospitals, according to a new study.

The only other California institution among the top 25 was Antelope Valley Hospital in Lancaster with 130,659 emergency room visits.

Parkland Health and Hospital System in Dallas led the list with 210,152 emergency room visits — double the number at Sharp Grossmont. Researchers attributed some of the total to a COVID-19 surge.

NiceRx, a prescription service in Florida, conducted the study, based on data from the federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and Becker’s Hospital Review, an industry publication.

New York had the highest level of emergency room visits with 2,283 visits per 10,000 residents.

In comparison, Hawaii is the state with the fewest level of emergency room visits, at 342 per 10,000 residents. California also ranks on the low end, placing fifth nationally with 674 visits per 10,000.

The most common reason for ER visits is maternal and neonatal conditions, with a total of 519,500 discharges in December 2021. COVID-19 and surgeries rounded out the list.

Flu, mental health and substance use and injuries were the least common ailments treated in the ER.