So I was waiting in the ER (I just had surgery a week ago on an ovarian cyst & my lower back was killing me) & this lovely couple with huge Big Gulp cups walk in & proceed to fill out the questionnaire for the triage nurse.
The husband had sat down & the wife was filling out the paper work for herself. The wife yells over to her husband, so he comes over. She asks him, "How do I fill this out so them bring me back faster?". I don't know how far my eyes popped out of my head. But she turned in the sheet & told the woman that her doctor sent her over & she's having "chest pains" & might have a blood clot.
Well this woman who is having "chest pains" & a supposed blood clot then went outside & paced back & forth on the phone.
The sad thing is that since a lot of people are saying these things to get in faster now, it is affecting people who really are in pain and do need help.
Last year I was having really bad chest pains and for six months no one really took me seriously and was completely misdiagnosed a few times. It got to the point that I pretty much just gave up cause no one took me seriously. When I passed out five times in one night and the EMTs convinced me to actually go to the hospital and the doctors saw I had spikes in my heart rate up to 160bpm while just laying in bed, needless to say they finally got concerned then.
I just feel bad for the other people who are actually are in pain but don't get taken seriously because of all the people that lie about it now.
A lot of other posters here are also commenting on people leaving the ED just to call an ambulance to try to get in faster. What an abuse of resources. Talk about wasting everyone's time.
Unfortunately, this isn't even the worst. I've see "increase pain from my corn and can't wait the 3 days to see my podiatrist" (of course they claimed to need a cab ride home). Or, "I put my contacts in 2 hours ago, and now I can't get them out" (also needed us to provide her a ride home).
I just feel bad for the other people who are actually are in pain but don't get taken seriously because of all the people that lie about it now.
Not to mention, people are hurting themselves with these lies. For example, I had a patient sign in "nausea and vomiting." She asked registration for her slip back and then wrote in parentheses "and chest pain with trouble breathing." This sets off my bull manure alarm. Anyway, she doesn't even mention her CP and SOB until I ask about it. She says "oh, I forgot about that!" If someone is SOB with CP, how does that person "forget??" She was a little dehydrated from the N/V and was mildly tachycardic. So here is a patient who is tachy with CP and SOB. She gets a CTA because of her (possibly made up) symptoms. Well the contrast load and the radiation are harmful to the patient. She has now set herself up for kidney damage and increased her risk for blood cancers because she felt the need to exaggerate her symptoms to get seen sooner. Quite frustrating when you are in the business of helping people achieve better health.
Many of the medics near us will let us know when someone is "triage appropriate". If we have open beds and no one in the lobby, we don't send them because we immediate bed anyways. But it is very helpful when we are full with 15 more people in the lobby. Your STD check can wait in line.
Some folks have figured out that they can claim suicidal ideation, and get a bed, anxiety meds, unlimited food, nurses and techs a call light away, a shower and unlimited personal television access until psychology comes to clear them-which unfortunately can take well over a day, especially if it's the weekend. I can see why this is much more appealing, since if you're claiming chest pain we're not going to let you eat or drink until you're medically cleared, which can take hours of tests.
DearDylan
8 Posts
The sad thing is that since a lot of people are saying these things to get in faster now, it is affecting people who really are in pain and do need help.
Last year I was having really bad chest pains and for six months no one really took me seriously and was completely misdiagnosed a few times. It got to the point that I pretty much just gave up cause no one took me seriously. When I passed out five times in one night and the EMTs convinced me to actually go to the hospital and the doctors saw I had spikes in my heart rate up to 160bpm while just laying in bed, needless to say they finally got concerned then.
I just feel bad for the other people who are actually are in pain but don't get taken seriously because of all the people that lie about it now.