A Craigslist rant from an ER triage nurse

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
Who here thinks maybe they work with this RN?

[ raises hand ]

(Oh, and also, who thinks she rocks?)

[ keeps hand up ]
 
Febrifuge said:
Who here thinks maybe they work with this RN?

[ raises hand ]

(Oh, and also, who thinks she rocks?)

[ keeps hand up ]
Click to expand...

[raises hand as well]

Feb, you think they perhaps cloned this RN? Not to mention all the same patients... 🙄
 
Awesome post! :laugh: Thanks.....I needed a good laugh. Even though I spit my tea out at the screen at one point.


Katee
 
Triage nurse orders xrays, labs and ekgs? Holy hell, where do I go to work in that kind of ED? All you have to do is H&P, look at the studies already done and dispo!
 
USCDiver said:
Triage nurse orders xrays, labs and ekgs? Holy hell, where do I go to work in that kind of ED? All you have to do is H&P, look at the studies already done and dispo!
Click to expand...

You don't even need to look at the studies... she apparently does that for you too....
 
USCDiver said:
Triage nurse orders xrays, labs and ekgs? Holy hell, where do I go to work in that kind of ED? All you have to do is H&P, look at the studies already done and dispo!
Click to expand...
Standing orders work really well, when the RN's are really good. Add Albuterol nebulizers and UA to that list too. 🙂
 
Febrifuge said:
Who here thinks maybe they work with this RN?
Click to expand...

Works with her, hell. I married her!

Take care,
Jeff
 
Febrifuge said:
Who here thinks maybe they work with this RN?

[ raises hand ]

(Oh, and also, who thinks she rocks?)

[ keeps hand up ]
Click to expand...
Looks like it was posted from craigslist in portland, so given that she works for an HMO with its own infrastructure it's pretty easy to guess who she works for.

Is the craig's list phenomenon really catching on in the rest of the country? It's practically put the classified section of the SF newspapers out of business.
 
USCDiver said:
Triage nurse orders xrays, labs and ekgs? Holy hell, where do I go to work in that kind of ED? All you have to do is H&P, look at the studies already done and dispo!
Click to expand...


We do this in my ED, either in triage or after the nurse is assigned the patient from triage we can order all this stuff. There are standing orders for all labwork, x-rays, and EKG's, as well as the other things like the heplock, monitor, oxygen, nebulizer treatments, aspirin for chest pains, and tylenol/motrin for fevers. It seems to be working out well for both us (the nurses) and the doctors. I can get everything done without having to wait for the doc to order it, and you can have your results and stuff ready for when you pick up the patient.
 
imagin916 said:
We do this in my ED, either in triage or after the nurse is assigned the patient from triage we can order all this stuff. There are standing orders for all labwork, x-rays, and EKG's, as well as the other things like the heplock, monitor, oxygen, nebulizer treatments, aspirin for chest pains, and tylenol/motrin for fevers. It seems to be working out well for both us (the nurses) and the doctors. I can get everything done without having to wait for the doc to order it, and you can have your results and stuff ready for when you pick up the patient.
Click to expand...
this works well as long as folks stick to the protocol. we have a few nurses who think a pt doesn't need as particular test on the protocol, don't ask anyone, don't order it and then the pt is seen 2-3 hrs later with all labs done except the one you really need so you draw the lab and they wait another hr.....or they go overboard and order a cxr on everyone with a cough and back up radiology so folks who really need studies wait longer.....with a good triage nurse the system works like a charm....with maybe 20% of nurses who have no business doing triage it is a nightmare.....
on a separate note sessamoid- I think I have worked at this er with this nurse in the past...it can only be a few places and I have worked at most of them.....
 
emedpa said:
this works well as long as folks stick to the protocol. we have a few nurses who think a pt doesn't need as particular test on the protocol, don't ask anyone, don't order it and then the pt is seen 2-3 hrs later with all labs done except the one you really need so you draw the lab and they wait another hr.....or they go overboard and order a cxr on everyone with a cough and back up radiology so folks who really need studies wait longer.....with a good triage nurse the system works like a charm....with maybe 20% of nurses who have no business doing triage it is a nightmare.....
on a separate note sessamoid- I think I have worked at this er with this nurse in the past...it can only be a few places and I have worked at most of them.....
Click to expand...


I can see your point here. In my ED, usually the triage nurse herself is too busy to order all of this stuff, so when the patient is transferred to me from triage, I can order this stuff from the main ED. I use my judgement for what to order and what not to order on the patients, and if I am not sure, I grab one of the docs and ask them. I am more conservative about ordering x-rays than blood tests, but in the case that I didnt order the blood test you wanted, I can always add it on to the lab rather than having to redraw it most of the time. Fortunatly, that doesnt happen too often, I know the docs that I work with pretty well, and I know what tests they would order for which patients. The only x-rays I usually order are CXR on elderly patients who have SOB or chest pain, anything else I wait for them to be seen. As far as meds go, usually I only will give tyenol and/or motrin for fever and nebulizer treatments before the patient is seen. We do have standing orders for prednisone, but I would rather wait for the doc to see the patient before I give that. If the patient is really that bad that they need it now, I will pull you to see the patient anyway.
 
Has anyone else noted that when referring to the triage nurse everyone seems to be using she/her? Lots of excellent nurses are men (especially in the ED/ICU setting).

A small, but not insignificant, point.
 
s/he gotta be a med school reject.
 
hello23 said:
s/he gotta be a med school reject.
Click to expand...

I doubt it. My wife, the ER nurse, has never, ever harbored any desires to go to medical school. She could have written that post.

Triage is a crappy job. Too much of it can easily give you a crappy attitude that leads to an unhealthy dose of, well, realism.

Take care,
Jeff
 
I seem to recall that nurse explicitly stating that s/he had no desire to be a woctor, umm, I mean doctor.
 
WilcoWorld said:
I seem to recall that nurse explicitly stating that s/he had no desire to be a woctor, umm, I mean doctor.
Click to expand...

Oh, that is SO going to live on far after that tread is dead and gone. 🙂

That and murse.

Take care,
Jeff
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

watermanMD
Provider in triage
Replies
37
Views
3K
thegenius
thegenius
H
Life lessons as an ER doc?
Replies
21
Views
3K
Birdstrike
Birdstrike
wareagle726
Jenny Rant
Replies
39
Views
4K
CoolWhipp
CoolWhipp
N
WANTED: ER Paper Chart Templates
Replies
9
Views
684
emergentmd
E
thegenius
AI Tech for the ER
2
Replies
70
Views
4K
EctopicFetus
EctopicFetus
Top