Ocala.com Bloggers
- Broken News
- Bill Thompson
- Digital Editor
- Eric Barnes
- Frame 37
- Ocala.com Multimedia
- Marion Politics
- Newsroom
- Observations
- Naseem S. Miller
- OcalaDay
- Joe Byrnes
- Read My E-Mail
- Allen Parson
- Running Wide Open
- Joe Vanhoose
- Speaking of Business...
- Dr. Philip R. Geist
- The Bowling Blog
- Debbie Whitten
- The Green Zone
- Dave Rhea
- The Sports Blog
- Gregory Broome
- What is that?
- Newsroom
 |
Search Blogs
|
 |
|
|
|
|
Blog Archives
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Health Reporter Goes to the Emergency Room
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Location: Blogs Health Alert |
 |
| Posted by: Naseem S. Miller |
Sunday, October 28, 2007 |
I had a minor emergency a few weeks ago and had to go to the ER.
It was 8:30 p.m. All the walk-in clinics were closed. I couldn't wait till tomorrow either. The next morning, at 8 a.m., I was scheduled to extract my four wisdom teeth, which meant I would be knocked out cold for the rest of that day.
So, I picked up my purse, threw in my book, To Kill a Mockingbird, and drove to the closest hospital. (Note: I don't live in Marion County)
I parked in the ER lot at 9 p.m. unaware of the long journey ahead.
I walked in to the small cramped waiting area, which was lined with chairs, all facing a big-screen TV. To the side there were two desks. A piece of paper hung from each. One read Registration, the other, Triage.
But, let's being with our cheerful Greeter, Mike. "Hello, are you here to see a doctor?"
"Duh!" I thought to myself, but I said politely, "Yes".
He pointed me to the registration desk. The gentleman there handed me a piece of paper, which pretty much had me waive all my rights to sue the hospital if something happened. No problem. He got the name and address and asked me to have a seat.
A lady fetched me a minute later and walked me to the Triage desk, which was planked beside Registration. Things were moving pretty quickly. Great!
She started to ask question to decide the nature of my emergency. I knew with each answer I was pushing myself further and further down the triage list, but what I was to do? Fake a heart attack?
She asked me to sit down and a nurse will be with me shortly.
Unable to get away from the large, loud television that was showing some strange science fiction movie, I found myself a chair away from the lady who was coughing non-stop and began to read my book.
10:30 p.m. and my name was called. Hallelujah!
I walked into a small room that sat between the emergency department and the waiting area.
The nurse faced the computer and began rattling off questions and clicking away boxes on her screen. She didn't seem to have time to weigh me, so she asked, "Do you know how much you weigh?" Not really, I thought. But I blurted out a number. My emergency had nothing to do with my weight.
Throughout the course of the night, I ended up answering the same set of questions two more times. Still not sure if it was a cross-examination or the grand failure of technology.
She sent me back to the waiting area, and told me that the doctor will be with me shortly.
And so I resumed reading. I was starting to like Atticus. What a wonderful character!
And I read. And read. Mike did his duty and stopped by every once in a while asking if anyone needed anything. The first time I said, "No, thanks." The second time, I pulled a Kramer and asked for a decaf cappuccino. He smiled and said he can't do that. Ha ha. Whatever.
Finally, at midnight, a nurse came and called my name - yes my name - and another girl's. We walked back to the emergency department. My eyes lit up at the sight of doctors and nurses. Help is one the way, I thought!
He pointed to a patient bed pushed against the wall across the nurses' station and asked me to sit there. He walked away with the other girl.
A few minutes later he came back, took my blood pressure and temperature, asked me the same questions I had been asked before and said the doctor will be with me shortly.
And so I sat there, at the edge of the bed and watched as nurses passed by left and right. I eventually made myself comfortable on the bed, leaned back against the wall and began to read my book. The clock hit 12:30. My head was starting to hurt and I was really exhausted. There was no relief in sight. No one made eye contact with me, as if I were just another object. But I kept saying to myself that next time, one of them will stop by. Next time, the doctor will turn my way.
Suddenly the scanner went off. A 25-year-old was being brought in. She was having seizures. And that's when I realized I was doomed. Everyone dropped what they were doing, rushed to the board, started making phone calls, etc.
I was almost a non-emergency. I did not belong there. But I needed help.
And that's when I burst into tears and buried my head into my book, right where Dill, Scout and Jem were trying to get Boo Radley come out of his house.
No one paid me any mind. As I said, I was a non-emergency. I was breathing, I could walk, and I could talk.
It wasn't until 1:30, an hour later, when the doctor dropped by my bed. Asked me the same questions all over again, wrote me a prescription and asked me to wait.
Four and a half hours for a prescription.
The nurse fetched me 15 minutes later. Took my temp and bp and walked me to the billing desk. The girl with seizures was seizing alone in the room. I felt sorry for her; If I were here I would have wanted somebody by my side.
I got home a little after 2 a.m. and I was thankful that in a few hours the oral surgeon would put me under and I would forget about all this, at least for a while. |
|
| Permalink |
Trackback |
Comments (1)
Add Comment
|
Re: Health Reporter Goes to the Emergency Room |
By old doc on
Thursday, November 01, 2007 |
| Sounds like you wasted the time of the hospital. Why did you go? Whatever your problem, it sure doesn't sound life threatening. Sounds like something your regular doctor could have handled THE NEXT DAY and outside of the ER. |
|
|
|
|
|