ER violence

Specialties Emergency

Published

Hi

I'm interested in knowing what types of violent situations you may have been exposed to in the ER. Does a lot of it come from drunks?

Thanks

Matt

Pardon me. Just what are you saying. That it is not the police officers responsibility to deal with people who committ assualt and battery? Are you saying that it is the nursing staff's responsibility? And why are you combative alzhiemer patients not housed on a secure unit, with proper staffing, so that no one gets hurt? And since your SO was hurt, on the job, Workers Comp is responsible for his medical and dental problems, not your insurance.

I've worked in ERs and on psych units. And have been assulted by patients. And have never had to taz anyone. Nor would I ever consider doing it. It is not my place nor my job to taz a patient. Feel free to punch the lights out of a patient. Just don't complain when he punches back. Violence only get more violence. and tazers are a form of violence.

Grannynurse :balloons:

I think that if the police are 15 minutes from your facility on the other end of the county you might want to keep your options open as to how to stop these folks from killing someone in the mean time. Some of my residents have been sent out for psych evals but get brought right back within a day or two in the same shape they left in. For some reason they act good in front of the psych folks. And yes my SO is covered by the workers comp but has had to pay a crap load until the can reimburse him for the ER visit, dentists visits, oral surgeon and the place that is making his partial plate.

I think that if the police are 15 minutes from your facility on the other end of the county you might want to keep your options open as to how to stop these folks from killing someone in the mean time. Some of my residents have been sent out for psych evals but get brought right back within a day or two in the same shape they left in. For some reason they act good in front of the psych folks. And yes my SO is covered by the workers comp but has had to pay a crap load until the can reimburse him for the ER visit, dentists visits, oral surgeon and the place that is making his partial plate.

I worked at a state facility, on evenings, when there was significantly less staff. Any patient that physically acted out, and they did, were dealt with in a manner limiting injury to the patient and the staff. In the three years I worked there, we never had an injury such as you describe. And I covered the unit responsible for housing the most violent patients. Perhaps they were intimadated by the fact that the staff was all over six foot tall and well muscled.

You SO may have invalidated his WC claim by paying for his care. If the WC company wants, they can refuse to pay him back, claiming he paid it, he is responsible. I know what I am talking about because I did WC case management for ten years and am well versed in the regulations and laws, in Florida. Your state may be different but I doubt it. No one should ever pay, up front, for any type of health care. No hospital, ER or oral surgeon is going to go bust becaquse you refer them to your WC carrier.

Most staff, who get injuried, get injuried because of their own mistakes. Or their own attitudes or their own bravado. I am not saying this is what happen to your SO, just that it was my experience, after ten years, of dealing with WC injuries to health care workers.

Grannynurse :balloons:

Specializes in ER, ICU, L&D, OR.

Ahh where was the pepper spray last night when I needed it. I got kicked in my genitalia last night. Im not quite as fast as I used to be, I guess.

Walking very tenderly

Hi

I'm interested in knowing what types of violent situations you may have been exposed to in the ER. Does a lot of it come from drunks?

Thanks

Matt

I am from Ontario in Canada and work in a Er department. I would say our drunks are the least of our worries. Lately it is significant others and people waiting in the waiting area causing the most violence as in verbal abuse. They cannot deal with the waiting times and take it out on the frontline worker.

Physical violence usually comes from our regular physciatric patients and overdoses.

Thanks

ginger :nurse: :nurse:

-----------

How AWESOME it would be to work in an ED with tazers in effect. My dream come true!! But then I'd want to tazer the he** out of a lOOOOOT of patients!!

I'm afraid I would tazer the heck out of a lot of doctors! lmao

Specializes in ER, ICU, L&D, OR.
Ahh where was the pepper spray last night when I needed it. I got kicked in my genitalia last night. Im not quite as fast as I used to be, I guess.

Walking very tenderly

Im back to walking normally now

Specializes in Trauma, Teaching.

Tom, glad you're walking again, how much golf did you lose out on :p ?

Specializes in ER, ICU, L&D, OR.
Tom, glad you're walking again, how much golf did you lose out on :p ?

a little over a week untill pain subsided

Specializes in Emergency.

I have a situation that I am still weired out about.

I was working agency at a hospital in houston, and the charge wanted me to "help" with a lavage. ( do they even do that anymore??? haha) so i said, cool, and went into the patients room.

the patient was an OD arms, legs flailing, etc. the primary nurse told me to hold her mouth open while he inserted, next thing i know, my arm is about to be broken.

i told the nurse that we need other people to help restrain ........he refused. i told him then that we need security, we need restraints, he refused. I continued to help until my arm could no longer hold the pressure....... I told him i was leaving the room because it was unsafe.

the primary nurse told me....."if you are going to nurse here you have to get used to this"

WTF?>?????

later i was called into the supervisors office because I "walked out during the middle of a procedure" I stated my case, and all was well

point being the ANA takes a strong point against violence towards nurses. I've seen ribs broke, arms broke, i've been bitten, and i'm not gonna go through this just to do my JOB.

ya know, in some states it's a felony to assault a doctor, but nothing to assault a nurse. that's sorta weird to me.

Specializes in ED (Level 1, Pediatric), ICU/CCU/STICU.

I find it interesting that ED/ICU nurses who are anti-taser are sooo quick to point out the fatalities of taser exposure over the past 4-5 years, (113 I think was the posted number), yet how many patients have you seen that are killed by (drugs, violence, ect, or worse yet by nosocomial infections contracted from poor handwashing, or the floor nurse who OD'd a patient on coumading, digoxin, or the forever loved narcotic overdose that is now smurf blue secondary to the transdermal fentanyl, epidural, and the 2 vicoden ES that the floor nurse gave the patient for "breakthrough pain" whos eggs where forever scrambled due to hypoxia?

**I know, long run-on sentence....**

I have a situation that I am still weired out about.

I was working agency at a hospital in houston, and the charge wanted me to "help" with a lavage. ( do they even do that anymore??? haha) so i said, cool, and went into the patients room.

the patient was an OD arms, legs flailing, etc. the primary nurse told me to hold her mouth open while he inserted, next thing i know, my arm is about to be broken.

i told the nurse that we need other people to help restrain ........he refused. i told him then that we need security, we need restraints, he refused. I continued to help until my arm could no longer hold the pressure....... I told him i was leaving the room because it was unsafe.

the primary nurse told me....."if you are going to nurse here you have to get used to this"

WTF?>?????

later i was called into the supervisors office because I "walked out during the middle of a procedure" I stated my case, and all was well

point being the ANA takes a strong point against violence towards nurses. I've seen ribs broke, arms broke, i've been bitten, and i'm not gonna go through this just to do my JOB.

ya know, in some states it's a felony to assault a doctor, but nothing to assault a nurse. that's sorta weird to me.

The primary nurse was wrong and should be reported to risk management, of the facility, and your agency. And battery, committed on anyone, is a crime.It is the prosecution that is a^^^^

Grannynurse :balloons:

I find it interesting that ED/ICU nurses who are anti-taser are sooo quick to point out the fatalities of taser exposure over the past 4-5 years, (113 I think was the posted number), yet how many patients have you seen that are killed by (drugs, violence, ect, or worse yet by nosocomial infections contracted from poor handwashing, or the floor nurse who OD'd a patient on coumading, digoxin, or the forever loved narcotic overdose that is now smurf blue secondary to the transdermal fentanyl, epidural, and the 2 vicoden ES that the floor nurse gave the patient for "breakthrough pain" whos eggs where forever scrambled due to hypoxia?

**I know, long run-on sentence....**

I am one of those anti-tazer nurses. And since I worked in Kings County, Brooklyn, ER, yes I've seen more then my share of violence and drug deaths. And I have been part of investigation teams for nursing and medical mistakes. I still do not believe it is my role orc rsponsibility to taz any patient. And I am surprised that Risk Management signed off on such a policy.

Grannynurse :balloons:

+ Add a Comment