First ER death

[Crux1024]

I just had my first ER patient death. (Not my FIRST death, just first in the ER).

It was very slow and dignified. 90+ LOL with a massive head bleed (original complaint was headache), came in initally reponsive, but eventually went unresponsive and slowly withered away. There was a DNR order, so we could relax. All I did was pray that the son and family made it before she passed, they did. Hospice was consulted but it was decided that she would probably not make the ambulance ride over there. We watched her BP and O2 sat dwindle away to nothing. All in all, it took 5 hrs or so. The family was ready and very appreciate of us, though I felt like we did nothing.

Now, if only they were all like that.

[MarieRandwood]

Thank you for sharing your experience! I'm sure you made this patient feel as comfortable as possible during her final moments and helped her family through the process.

[SHGR, MSN, RN, CNS]

That sounds beautiful. Every death should be so peaceful and dignified.

[K+MgSO4, BSN]

Just wondering why you would keep her monitored. As a ward nurse as soon as I recognise that an NFR/not for MET call pt is actively dying I pull out the obs machine IV poles and pumps and all the medical junk I can bar the suction. I feel that it is not beneficial to the family to be watching a monitor rather than their dying family member.

[onlyserendipity9]

Thank you for sharing. Very well put. Any death is always hard ... I still remember my first -- I did chest compressions on him during a CAT call in the ICu and had taken care of him for almost a week. We were getting ready to transfer him off the unit when he coded. So sad. I must have cried intermitently for almost a week. I still think about it.

[Altra, BSN, RN]

Just curious ... was the patient in for an admitted bed, and just didn't get the bed in time?

[VICEDRN, BSN, RN]

Yeah...also want to know why patient is occupying stretcher for this length of time. Should be been excited bed assignment to floor for patient and family privacy.

glad you felt good about this experience though...

[Kiwidanni]

Yeah...also want to know why patient is occupying stretcher for this length of time. Should be been excited bed assignment to floor for patient and family privacy.

glad you felt good about this experience though...

Do your ER's not have private rooms? Or proper beds? Cos ours sure do. There are stretchers for resus and quick visits, and proper rooms with proper beds if they are needed.

Why send a patient to an already crowded floor if the ER can handle it?

[Altra, BSN, RN]

Do your ER's not have private rooms? Or proper beds? Cos ours sure do. There are stretchers for resus and quick visits, and proper rooms with proper beds if they are needed.

Why send a patient to an already crowded floor if the ER can handle it?

If no interventions were planned, then there is no reason to keep the patient in the ER. Where I've worked, this would have been made a priority - to get the patient to a private room on the floor.

[Crux1024]

There were no interventions planned. We're werent busy and as a courtesy to the family she wasnt moved. She was in a private, quiet room. She was initially put in for a hospice bed but doctors and nurses alike figured she would die en route (its a separate facility), and no one wanted that. It wasn't my decision to keep her there, but no one seemed to mind. As I said, this was my first ER death....IDK what the protocol is/was but this all seemed to be the status quo.

Also, the monitors were left on per Dr. request. But honestly, the family appreciated seeing the vitals on the monitor (they had told us so.) I know I personally would, but I am weird like that sometimes.