I got so tired of this that I have started telling everyone that walks in...
"Ok, I like to let everyone know right up front that you will be here for around __ hours or more. I can lie to you if you want and say 30 minutes, but it is what it is. So if you have a cell phone or tablet or something, go right ahead and use it. I'll do my very best for you, but like I said, it will be hours."
I have to tell you, it completely works on 95% of my patients! I almost never get the whiny complaints anymore!
I'm curious. Do you work ER? If so, then where? I am a Canadian ER nurse, in the busiest ER in my city, and I can tell you that the days when our way time gets up to four hours are pretty rare, and our wait time is calculated based on CTAS 3 and 4 patients. If you are a 1 you are in a bed immediately. 2s also get seen much faster than our wait time predicts.
If someone is waiting more than 4 hours to be seen they are probably a CTAS 5, and should not have come to the ER in the first place (tiny splinter removal, prescription refill, need a sick note etc.)
I'm curious if this is very different in other parts of the country.
Well I can tell you that in Quebec, the shortest amount of time I have ever waited in the ED (bilateral pyelonephritis with high temp, BP starting to crash, and per my mom, docs said I was in ARF by then), was 4 hours. Triage nurse actually showed me her screen and told me I was triaged top priority. I do get that they kept getting ambulances though, so I'm sure resp/cardio distress/arrest trumps kidney issues and sepsis. Most I've ever waited was like 18 hours. I was 13 or so, ear infection so bad my ear was actively leaking pus, so much pain I couldn't stand to lie down to go to sleep.
When I was working, I regularly heard about waits over 24-36 hours.
I've been doing a lot of education lately with pts, who tell me they use ER cuz they have no insurance. I encourage financial councilor appointments at doc offices.
It makes more sense to eat those costs than the astronomical amounts charged for ER visit
Yeah, the longest I have ever waited in the ER was 2.5 hours. It was a busy day, and I was triaged level 3. I can't imagine what the media around here would make of a 24 hour *waiting room* wait. That's nuts!
uRNmyway, ASN, RN
1,080 Posts
Well I can tell you that in Quebec, the shortest amount of time I have ever waited in the ED (bilateral pyelonephritis with high temp, BP starting to crash, and per my mom, docs said I was in ARF by then), was 4 hours. Triage nurse actually showed me her screen and told me I was triaged top priority. I do get that they kept getting ambulances though, so I'm sure resp/cardio distress/arrest trumps kidney issues and sepsis. Most I've ever waited was like 18 hours. I was 13 or so, ear infection so bad my ear was actively leaking pus, so much pain I couldn't stand to lie down to go to sleep.
When I was working, I regularly heard about waits over 24-36 hours.