VIP Triage

Specialties Emergency

Published

A state senator walks into our ED. Management rushes in to ensure the pt gets in ahead of all others. all the beds are full to hall 8. Our charge nurse says no, I am in charge during her lunch and say no. Management takes the patient to cath lab to be seen and we go on about our bussiness. The next day they charge the Charge RN with insubordination. Does any one have any experience with the legalities of this situation?

Specializes in ICU-Stepdown.

hmm. I don't considder her to really be all that 'beautiful'. Overdone, overblown and a high-maintenance brat? yes, that.

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I am getting really confused now. I thought that it was only Medicaid patients that abused the ER. Was this a true emergency for the Senator

why didn't he just go to his own private doctor. I know my sister works for our governors doctor and frequently has to make house calls to the mansion to give him care. Something doesn't sound right.

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Specializes in ICU-Stepdown.

can't speak for the senator, but ALL age and financial/social levels abuse ERs -many don't want to wait a week or two to get an appointment with their doctor (I'm lucky in that my PCP always manages to fit someone in that day, if they need to be fit in) -others just think they will get what they want faster if they go to the ER -though usually you see them walk out in a huff a couple of hours later because of the lines.

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Specializes in ER.

A very nicely dressed lady came to our ER after spending a couple hours outside with her children. It was pretty cold that day (windchill -10) and her chief complaint was "my cheeks are red."

I guess she doesn't play outside very often.

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Specializes in OB, M/S, HH, Medical Imaging RN.

When I was working at the hospital we used to have country music stars come to the floor. Not only would they get star treatment, since they didn't want anyone to know they were there they also didn't get charged! :angryfire

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Specializes in OR, OB, EM, Flight, ICU, PACU.......
Mannnurse65, I know it stinks but that is life. VIP's always get VIP treatment or heads do roll. Lousy, unfair, but that is the reality. We all hate it, we all decry it but you fight it to your own detriment.

Be glad you aren't being charged with insubordination.

Once when the Prez came to our town, the roads were basically shut down from the airport to his destination. It made me wonder what would be the fate of some ordinary person needing EMS during that time. But there was no bucking it. Either you stayed healthy during the truthfully brief time the roads were closed for all but him or you died, I guess.

:bowingpurI totally know what you are talking about! Was on the Trauma Rm. (no traumas in the near future) when the Pres. came to town. Was told to get the Trauma room ready for him (it's the Law , since Kennedy) and go get interviewed by the Secret Service. All of us, the surgeons, me, Anesthesia and the Tech. Was more fortunate than my co-workers, as I recognised the interviewer from my Special Forces days! Were in the break room for 4 hours +, the 2 hours before the visit, and the 2 after.

"And now, for something completely different!":typing:yeah:

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Specializes in Home Care, Hospice, OB.
i totally know what you are talking about! was on the trauma rm. (no traumas in the :bowingpurnear future) when the pres. came to town.

all animals are created equal, but some are more equal than others!!:rolleyes:

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Specializes in OR, OB, EM, Flight, ICU, PACU.......

:bowingpurDon't you just love it! I've had professional Athletes, Actors and Actresses, Polititians, the Famous and Near Famous, CEOs, CFOs and all kinds of Os, in my ED and ORs . What comes to mind is my favorite line in "Animal House", where all Animals are created equal, but some Animals are more equal than others!:banghead::smokin:

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Specializes in Home Care, Hospice, OB.
what comes to mind is my favorite line in "animal house", where all animals are created equal, but some animals are more equal than others!:banghead::smokin:

actually, my favorite line from animal house is

"don't flatter yourself, otter. it wasn't that great!":smokin:

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Specializes in ER.
I resent the vips as well, but they are a fact of life -always have been and always will be.

Not sure I want a senator to 'do something about it' -the only thing those politicians think will fix things is to tax it harder, add paperwork and more red tape. They are a big part of the reason we have it as hard as we do.

it would be interesting if that senator was not a high priority illness, and he knew it, and was ok to wait - and did not ask to receive VIP treatment. Did that happen, I doubt it. If he were emergent, you can bet he'd receive quick treatment with MANY doctors right away ... but this senator should've had the intelligence to realize if he was not truly ill and that other people with life-threatening injuries (or more serious than this senator's illness) were a higher priority. Who knows, he might've said that...

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Specializes in ER.
I had one sweet little old man who was worried about his wife, and it was one of those nights where it was taking hours to get room assignments. I explained the process to him (wait for the admit orders, call for a bed, wait for the assignment,) and what we don't say: wait for the floor to be ready, wait for the nurse to accept report, etc. He finally asked if it would have made a difference if he had told us he was on the hospital board of directors, I said no honey, when I don't have beds I just don't have beds. Poor thing was determined not to throw his weight around.

I had a patient's husband, within an insanely busy waiting room, say "what can you do to move us in quicker, I pay your salary, I'm on the board of directors." I told him that I could not move him in quicker and I resented him trying to pull any kind of authority when only illnesses are my priority for triaging and her illness was not a higher priority than the others I had brought back. He didn't like that.

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Specializes in ER.
Tell the hospital manegment you'll contact the local newspapers.... threaten them. A similar situation happened at our hospital, but it was our CFO, he had some minor illness with nausea. Lord, the stinking hospital nurse supervisor grabed him out of the waiting room and bum rushed him to the back. Heck he had his labs and script in hand within 30min. Well, a pt saw this happen while they were in the waiting room, and confronted the triage nurse about it, so the nurse spilled the beans on it. It was a big stink and a embarrassing for the higher up "bean counters".

I'm sure that nurse that spilled the beans is no longer there or written up.... even though that nurse wasn't wrong - it's like you have to shut up about it or suffer the consequences of doing what is RIGHT. Hmmph. :madface::madface:

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