Valley Morning Star, March 3, 2007 HARLINGEN -  When Felicia Abrego rushed her son to the emergency room Monday evening, she had no idea they'd still be waiting for a doctor 12 hours later. Abrego's son Marco Fuerte had twisted his ankle while playing football, and his ankle and foot had swollen and turned colors. Abrego knew it wasn't a life-threatening condition, but as the clock ticked on, she found herself becoming impatient. The triage nurse had examined him and he'd had an X-ray, but the doctor hadn't yet seen him, she said. The wait became unbearable to Abrego, and she and her son left the next morning without seeing a doctor. A shortage of hospital beds, a high number of insured and uninsured residents who use the ER for primary care, a growing population and an ongoing nursing shortage all are contributing to longer waits in the Valley's emergency departments, hospital officials said. Many of those elements are also at play nationwide, according to Dr. Angela Gardner, associate professor of emergency medicine at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston and a representative for the American College of Emergency Physicians.