Frustrating reasons why people go to the ER (mild rant):
My doctor's office sent me out because they close at 5pm and it is now 3:45, so they don't have any more openings. (Funny how when our ER doc calls that particular doctor will tell them the staff never even told them about the patient's call, or that the patient never called at all.)
I can't go my FMD because I owe them money and they won't see me. (oh, and you think this is free?!?!)
I have an appointment at my doctor this afternoon but I didn't want to feel bad that long. (so now our ER docs are miracle workers that will wave a magic wand and cure what ails ya instantly)
I'm tired of feeling this way and I want to find out what's wrong with me. (again, our ER docs are miracle workers that can wave a magic wand over you and find out instantly what months of tests by FMD and specialists haven't been able to find out)
I am between doctors right now because I just got back on medicaid. (do you realize that medicaid is only going to reimburse the hospital pennies on the dollar for your visit here today to diagnose and treat your rash?)
My doctor's office is closed now. (why no, I didn't know I could call him/her 24/7 through the hospital answering service.)
I don't have a doctor for my 3month old baby. (WTF?!?!?)
I go to the local free clinic and it takes weeks to get an appointment there. (so instead you come here, because, afterall, this is free clinic west)
We were sent here by the FMD to meet the surgeon because my child has side pain. (cause after all, we are the surgeon's out patient clinic)
The ortho surgeon wants to bring a patient down to ER to do a conscious sedation closed reduction (never mind that three ambulances are out on a five car pile-up, and we can spare neither the room nor the nurse)
The ER doc has just told an out of town doc that, sure she would be glad to see a patient he is sending out for a blood transfusion. (at same time the three ambulances are out on the five car pile up. I guess it's easier than calling a doctor with admitting priveleges so the patient can be a direct admit to a holding bed. Nevermind that we still don't have the rooms or the nurses to take care of such a patient.)
I went to work and just didn't feel good enough to stay so I came here. (so all you really want is a work statement? Come on, be honest now.)
I have a bad tooth and the pain is killing me (better that than the meth that caused your teeth to rot in the first place)
Sorry so long, but it was a long day and got really frustrating toward the end of the shift. Just had to let off some steam!
I had this woman come in the other day for LLQ pain. She had gone to another hospital 2 days before and they did an ultrasound, cat scan and blood work and they found nothing wrong with her. So she comes to us. I go to start an IV and she cried like a frigging baby. I used a 24! I mean she cried hysterically. I have had children cry less than that. So anyway, the doc examines her and he says he will do a pelvic ultrasound(AGAIN) and her sister who is an EMT says can you make that STAT? SO than later she tells me that the doc said he will order the ultrasound STAT and that her sister is supposed to go first. I told her that in the ER EVERYTHING is ordered STAT and that her sister will go to ultrasound as soon as they can take her. So then I had another girl with kidney stones come in in excruciating pain who had to go for a KUB and I guess the doc discussed the results with her before he talked to the LLQ pain. So the EMT comes out yelling, " My sister was here first , so if that girl's results are back, then my sisters must be back"! I love how pt's and family decide what is and isn't their business. And then of course nothing was wrong with LLQ girl and her mom says, " Well, what about her gallbladder?" And the doc said we didn't do a gb us...we did a pelvic us. And the mom starts screaming...." I told you to do everything!" The doc tried to explain to her about the s/s of gb disease and how it didn't make sense to do a GB ultrasound for LLQ pain,.(as I did when she come in ) and then the husband says, " well we are a weird family so you have to check everything" And the mom says , " Well I had my gallbladder out and I had the same s/s." OF course she did. Anyhoo, LLQ chick was d/c and was all pissed off and probably went to a 3rd hospital the next day.
sixes...with a history like that, you should go to the ER!
The ones that frustrate me are the ones who use the ER as their primary provider for minor illnesses...the ones whose baby coughed once or the three year old who threw up after riding carnival rides for six hours straight or the ones with a negative history who have a fever and have made no attempts to treat it at home. Those are the ones who are frustrating. With a hostory like your son's, I would take him to the ER too and I would do what ever it took to get him seen ASAP.
OK...since I'm on my little soap box here...here's another one that drives me nuts. We see parents who bring their children in for fevers, coughs, runny noses, etc. They'll step outside three or four times during a one hour ER stay to smoke a cigarette, buy chips and soda from the vending machines for everyone, talk on the phone to their friends, etc. When time comes to dismiss, they want prescriptions for tylenol, motrin, etc since Medicaid will pay for them. Well, Medicaid doesn't pay for them anymore and we don't give out free tylenol. We'll give a dose in the ER, but we don't send the entire bottle home. When parents complain that they don't have money to buy tylenol, it's so hard not to ask them where they get the money for their chips and soda and cigarettes...
The ER Doc was furious eith me for waiting sooo long, and what kind of a Nurse was I etc. when he had the time ( once my son was breathing again) to listen he said whole smokes and too boot Ryan is allgeric to Keflex Erythromycin and Tetracycline.
Specializes in ER - trauma/cardiac/burns. IV start spec.
Even better the reasons for coming in by ambulance. We have a rotating ER here and all go to the "ER of the day". Reasons for ambulance:
I had a cold and no ride.
I got something coming out of my stuff.
My baby got a fever.
If I came in by car I would have to wait too long (too bad they went to triage anyway).
In the meantime we pull 3 major MI's out of automobiles at the main door to the ER not the amublance entrance. And the gunshot gets thrown out at the door (and I do mean thrown out)
We once had an elderly gentleman walk in having a major MI and when we took him straight back a woman jumped up and screamed "I was here first" when we explained that the patient was possibly dying she said "I don't care I was next"
Ok, i have a story to add. We have a woman that comes into our ER at least once a week. She brings her children in with various illnesses. The children are a 12 y/o boy and a 14y/o girl. She is always dressed in scrubs. Every cough, sneeze, jammed finger and turned ankle is an emergency situation that needs attention in this woman's eyes. She is a very (how should i say this).... Helpful mother. She tries to help the lab girl draw blood. She gives her input on how to position her child to get the best shot for an x-ray. She tries to explain to her daughter (who is giggling nervously, yet rating her migraine a 10) what a Demerol/Phenergan injection will feel like. You get the picture. Last week she brought her daughter in complaining of pelvic pain and heavy lady partsl bleeding, hence..she is going to subject her daughter to an unnecessary pelvic exam at the age of 14. (which by the way, was normal) I went into the room to set up for the pelvic and Mom had already dug through the drawers and had the K-Y and the speculum sitting on the tray!!!!! Upon discharge I decided to ask Mom what part of the medical field she was in......she replyed......"i'm a CNA, but i'm not working right now".......In other words, whe dresses in scrubs and brings her children to the ER just to mingle.............Can you say munchausen-by-proxy boys and girls?
Hi ER nurses!! I have a grandmother who is, shall we say- bored and a hypochondriac too boot! She went and got herself the Ann Landers medical book or encyclopedia or whatever it is called, and her newest thing is to go to the ER with her book in hand because she is SURE she has some tropical form of jungle disease or some damn exotic totally life threatening thing going on. Now we llive in Wisconsin and I dont think there is a good chance of her catching "jungle damn somethiing or other" from mingling at the senior center in her little tiny town she lives in, but it has gotten to the point where it drives me nuts, not to mention the nurses and docs there!! I have tried to get my mom to consider nursing home, or at least a psyce consult for my gramma, but no go. She is in an elderly apt building and now is busy convinsing other old ladies they have the Jungle death disease too!! I dread growing old!!!!!!! The ole gene pool isnt looking real good!!
Come in last night and the ER calls to tell me they are sending up a screaming pregnant woman who is coming in by ambulance. They tell me the EMTs do not see crowning but that the pt is both active and uncomfortable so they will skip the ER...Ok, I said..Woman shows up. No Fh...She is definitely screaming and seems to be in labor...Still no Fh...So, we do an ultrasound...NOT PREGNANT....Seems as though she miscarried a year to the day before...So sad, but the DOC and nurses were great and helped her through it..Prior to that ultrasound I would have really thought she was ready to deliver...I can just imagine if she had landed in the er.......
NurseJacqui
210 Posts
I had this woman come in the other day for LLQ pain. She had gone to another hospital 2 days before and they did an ultrasound, cat scan and blood work and they found nothing wrong with her. So she comes to us. I go to start an IV and she cried like a frigging baby. I used a 24! I mean she cried hysterically. I have had children cry less than that. So anyway, the doc examines her and he says he will do a pelvic ultrasound(AGAIN) and her sister who is an EMT says can you make that STAT? SO than later she tells me that the doc said he will order the ultrasound STAT and that her sister is supposed to go first. I told her that in the ER EVERYTHING is ordered STAT and that her sister will go to ultrasound as soon as they can take her. So then I had another girl with kidney stones come in in excruciating pain who had to go for a KUB and I guess the doc discussed the results with her before he talked to the LLQ pain. So the EMT comes out yelling, " My sister was here first , so if that girl's results are back, then my sisters must be back"! I love how pt's and family decide what is and isn't their business. And then of course nothing was wrong with LLQ girl and her mom says, " Well, what about her gallbladder?" And the doc said we didn't do a gb us...we did a pelvic us. And the mom starts screaming...." I told you to do everything!" The doc tried to explain to her about the s/s of gb disease and how it didn't make sense to do a GB ultrasound for LLQ pain,.(as I did when she come in ) and then the husband says, " well we are a weird family so you have to check everything" And the mom says , " Well I had my gallbladder out and I had the same s/s." OF course she did. Anyhoo, LLQ chick was d/c and was all pissed off and probably went to a 3rd hospital the next day.