X-rays for childbearing women

[Squirrel]

Hello once again!

Another question I have for you all is about sending childbearing women for an X-ray. Before sending her to X-ray you ask her if there is any chance she is pregnant. If she says no, do you then send her to X-ray or do you always get a urine HCG just to be sure? Or do you only get a urine HCG if she says she is not sure if she is pregnant or not? I am asking this because it seems that some ER doctors take the women's word that she is not pregnant while others want to get an HCG just to make sure. We currently do not have a policy for this, and I am wondering what your ERs do regarding this situation. The ER where I work is small and not extremely busy (it has its moments though!), and I can imagine how time consuming this would be in a very busy ER and perhaps not practical to do for everyone.

Also, I find it challenging to find a way to ask a teenager this question when her parents won't leave her side. I don't think it is appropriate to ask a young girl this question in front of her parents, and I am interested in hearing ways that you find successful in asking this question to young girls.

Thanks again to all!

[tony summers]

In our A&E only those women requiring certain spinal xrays or abdominal xrays would recieve a pregnancy test. For all other views the abdomen can be shielded.

Also we use the 10 day rule, if the women has had a menstrual bleed in the last 10 days then a pregnancy test is not needed. This is seems to work effectively and I am not aware of problems following this.

[flashpoint]

Our x-ray techs ask every female over age ten, point blank, no matter what. Parents aren't allowed in the room during x-rays...if assistance is needed in holding the patient still, ect, they are accompanied by a nurse.

I ask every female patient over age ten who has any symptoms between the neck and knees. Unless the patient is very young, I usually ask the parents to step out during some point in the exam...most of them know I am asking them to step out so I can ask the personal questions anyway, so I rarely get an objection...