Emergency Room: The ER Way

One of the busiest places on earth is any hospital's emergency room. Popularly known as ER, it is the best place to go to when an accident happens and you need help right away. The ER is open 24 hours a day and it is always filled with nurses and doctors who, day and night take care of problems that need urgent medical attention. Stay in the emergency room for a day and you'll see how conditions vary greatly throughout an entire 24 hours. However, not all patients can be accommodated in the ER. Conditions treated in the ER include:

• sports injuries

• car or road accidents

• burns

• cuts and broken bones from accidents

• uncontrolled bleeding

• asthma attacks and difficulty in breathing

• heart attacks and strokes

• unconsciousness and fainting

• homicidal or suicidal thoughts

• persistent vomiting, food poisoning and overdoses

• allergic reactions from medication, food or insect bites

• high fever and complications from diseases

If you feel or suffer from any of the conditions mentioned above, you can walk into the emergency room of a hospital. If it is too far from you and the condition is severe and needs urgent medical attention such as heart attacks or strokes, you should call an ambulance. An ambulance will bring you to the ER fast. You will also receive immediate treatment during the ride on the way to the ER.

When you reach the ER, you will be asked to sign in at a front door except when you are in critical condition. This is a way of informing the ER staff that you are there and for documentation also. If you really need quick attention, this step will be skipped and you will be taken right into the ER to see a doctor.

Sometimes, when the ER is filled with patients, the next step is to see a “triage nurse.” The triage nurse's job is to make sure that the sickest patients are attended to first. You can wait in the designated waiting area while it's not your turn yet.

When it is already your turn, you will be asked to go to an examining room. An ER exam room usually has a bed and a chair. You will also see several medical apparatuses such as an oxygen tank, tubing and other equipment. It doesn't mean, though, that you will have to use it. They are just there in case a patient who needs it comes in. When the doctor comes in, he will talk to you about your problem and examine you. He may or may not perform additional tests after the first examination. The doctor figures out what causes the problem or what your disease is, and decides what to do next. You may be given a prescription for medicines that you need. Sometimes, you will be confined to the hospital until your condition improves.