Sorry but waiting in the Emergency Room may be a Good Thing.

I wrote earlier this week that I moved to Maine and am not working full time. The good news is that I work doing switchboard and emergancy room registration. The excellent news is that I want to provide excellent customer service before you go the er the next time by telling you what I have learned. At the bottom of my post I am putting a link to a cracked.com article that deals with the same topic.

Before I get started I want to share this absolutely amazing video that is about empathy. When you go to a hospital literally everyone has a story. Every person who walks in the door and every employee has a story. I am writing this post as a way to help not tear down. Unless you work in a hospital it is hard to understand why you are waiting or what is happening behind closed doors. WARNING: THIS VIDEO WILL MAKE YOU WANT TO CRY BUT WATCH IT ANYWAY BECAUSE IT IS AMAZING. https://youtu.be/cDDWvj_q-o8

1.  I am not clinical.
Sorry I am not clinical. I am here to greet you and then either direct you to the department you need, point you to the sign in sheet to get you into the er, or register you for lab work/radiology. I also answer the phones. I do not know if you have a rash or a burn. I can give you a puke bucket but cannot give you medication. I was hired for my customer service skills. The nurse or Doctor in the er has medical training and they will be able to triage you effectively.
Even though I am not clinical I still care. I applied for and accepted this job knowing I would be helping people because I want to. When you come in the door and you are hurt or scared or sick I want you to be met by a friendly compassionate person. I will do what I can to assure you that you are being heard and you will be assisted.


2. Waiting is not always a bad thing nor is it intentional.
When you go to the emergency room and you see no one in the waiting room you might be surprised when you have a wait. Please don't ever take that wait personally. When you check into the er there is a process flow. At the hospital I work at; for example, you give basic demographic information (name/date of birth) and why you are coming in to be seen. I then enter you into the computer system. If you are having a literal life or death emergency I will call the nurses station or run down a hallway and flag down the first person wearing scrubs. There is also a camera behind me and in the waiting room that can be seen at the nurses station. Once I enter you into the system the nurses know you are in the hospital. I also have 2 to 5 minutes once you tell or hand me your information to put your information in the computer. I type 70 wpm. The nurses know you are waiting.
Now comes the tricky part. Emergency rooms have ambulance bays and a set number of beds. The waiting room could be empty but maybe we had six ambulances pull up. Or maybe we have 4 heart attacks happening. Or maybe a patient in crisis hit a nurse. If someone is coding the clinical staff will be detained. Again; if you are having a life or death literal emergency you will get ushered in quickly. I have seen every bed but 2 full and then an ambulance pull up and six people come in the door back to back. I cannot tell you every bed is full but we are a first come first served establishment. The clinical staff does there best to triage quickly and keep patients moving. Everyone wants to help you, but you may have to wait.

3. You may have to wait to see a loved one. Especially if they came by ambulance.
I always feel bad about telling a loved one it will be a few minutes but it could be up to a half hour before they can see a patient.  When an ambulance arrives the clinical staff immediately beings working. When a patient who walks in and gets assigned to a bed it is the same. There are tests to be ordered. Maybe the patient must be brought to radiology. Maybe an IV is being hooked up. Maybe labs are being drawn.  Sometimes the exam room can only hold two or three visitors and there are already four visitors in the room. I have heard some patients refuse visitors. When you come to visit I will notify the nursing staff with the same urgency as if you are a patient. It is most likely a message in the computer or a phone call to the nurses station. The nurse will get you as soon as they can or as soon as your loved one gets back to their room. I know you are worried and I want to help. I know you are upset and I want to help.

3. If there is a wait and you want to leave.
Please be patient.  Once you check in you are getting billed.  I also do not know wait times at other hospitals but if they have an ambulance bay like us it varies on a minute to minute basis. The nurses know you are here. Once I enter you in the system your medical history pops up. A wristband prints with any allergies. The clinical staff makes preperations to begin triaging you even if you are waiting. You will be seen.

Thank you for reading this post. I hope it helps alleviate some stress when waiting at the er.

http://www.cracked.com/personal-experiences-1974-we-dont-have-to-treat-you-6-realities-inside-er.html