Emergency Room Case Study

Mondays in the emergency room (ER) are typically busy. Most of the patients contributing to this volume have dealt with a medical issue all weekend, cannot get into their primary care provider or both. Of course, there are the typical emergent patients that have no other choice but to be seen immediately, and they make up the rest of the volume. The aforementioned reasons often cause increased stress and frustration among these patients. So, as an emergency room nurse, it is understood that our encounters with patients might not be the best, as these people are probably not having their best day. When family members accompany these patients, this has the potential to add even more stress to the environment. I have worked in the emergency

I was nearing the end of my shift and was already worn out from the overload of patients we had seen in the ER all day. When I say worn out, that meant physically and mentally. The admitting clerk called back to the nurse’s station stating that there was a patient coming back that was experiencing shortness of breath. I met the patient in their exam room and was surprised when I saw that three family members were accompanying the patient. We have a general rule that only two family members are allowed back in the emergency room AFTER triage and this all depends on the severity of the patient, as

I told them that my patient is my primary concern and I am going to care for her to the best of my ability. I explained that I was following hospital protocol in my actions to initiate an EKG and lab work and that money had nothing to do with it. I also explained to the patient that she had the right to refuse any tests she felt were unnecessary, but those protocols have been proven beneficial for better patient outcomes. The patient agreed to both the EKG and labs and about that time the doctor entered the