A day in the life of..

[spookyevilone]

This
is
cool!

I am reading a bunch of amusing doctor/emt/nurse/cop blogs to remind myself that these folks have to deal with shitheads every day, and that ER docs have reason to be suspicious of someone presenting with acute abdominal pain with no apparent cause, asking for demerol and Zofran.

Even if the patient is me, with a clear history and charts of a condition that makes my history in the chart basically read, "If you see her, give her demerol and Zofran and if that doesn't fix the problem, give her Hematin."

Being treated like a drug seeking hypochondriac did not help with the craptacular week I'm having. It's hard to not take it personally when I get a shitty ER attending who doesn't listen or read the chart. Having to use the ER for pain management instead of being able to walk into the hospital general admittance does not make me happy and I hate the stupid insurance/hospital system that makes me go through the ER at all. There are no hot Croatian doctors in my ER, thus, I really don't want to be there, especially not for pain that won't kill me, just make me wish it would. When my AIP flares, they have to pump enough demerol into me to stun a rhino - it's not something any rational doctor is going to prescribe for me to keep around the house, and my flares aren't polite enough to wait until the clinic is open. The hospital won't admit anyone to general until they've passed through the baptismal fires of the ER and even if they did, my insurance wouldn't cover it without a) a referral from a doctor who's on vacation until Wednesday, or b) a visit to the ER.

If it wasn't for the intercession of another attending who had treated me before and happened to overhear, I would have made the news today - "Patient stabs Asshole Attending in eye with his own pen, news at 11." However, Attending Awesomecakes earned his shift pizza delivery courtesy of me, by walking in, assessing the situation, taking Attending Asshole aside and giving him a very curt lesson in reading the goddamn chart, and got me fixed up and home in less than an hour.

Also had to argue with Asshole Attending about how he was going to give me nice, non-addicting Zofran and not the Oxycontin he originally wrote the script out for.

So I'm spending the day in bed, reading blogs of people on the other side of the fence, and reminding myself that I shouldn't take it personally that they thought I was another of the drug seeking bastards who abuse the ER.

Comments

[moon-ferret.livejournal.com]

Nothing more annoying that to be accused of DSB or a Frequent Flier. I had to call the doc to ask for something for a broken tooth until I can get into the dentist after the first of the year. Nothing like having to ask for more pain meds on top of the pain meds I am on for my back. "Ok, so you are on X, Y and Z and it isn't touching the pain...?" Sadly, no. "Well, I can call in some of this or you can take more of Y..." Then I would be HIGH and in pain. No thanks.

And I was an EMT. I have seen "back pain" a lot.

[spookyevilone.livejournal.com]

I have a lot of respect for EMTs/ER doctors. I used to think I wanted to do that for a living, and then it was pointed out to me that the first time I had to deal with a small child who'd 'fallen down' or 'accidentally burned themselves' with a cigarette, I'd go to jail for murdering the parent.

I try not to get cranky when I'm treated like a DSB, but it's hard. I'm in a bad place this week, so it was harder than usual. It's also very anxiety-making to know that the longer I sit there in pain, the worse the flare is going to get and the longer it will take to resolve.

[moon-ferret.livejournal.com]

I tried to explain to an ER doc that a "4" on my scale is an "8" to most people. Just because I am not crying and shrieking like the bitch next to me doesn't mean I don't hurt. And in about two minutes, if you don't give HER something, I will. And you won't like it. Oy vey.

And children and people who have done stupid things to themselves and others are hard. Very hard. A friend who is still an ER nurse points out that at least 75% of the people he sees are because of their own abject stupidity. I would have to agree with him. That makes it hard on the 25% of us that are twisted because of the pain and anxiety and just want it to go away. I didn't do anything to make my body do this, it just happened. Can we please stop looking at me from the nurses' station and just GIVE ME SOMETHING???

Then again, I had to explain at the ER why I had put the top of a chain link fence through both palms while pregnant. I was barefoot and there were wood roaches involved. I thought the doc was going to piss himself laughing at that point. That time I was a welcome diversion of stupid.

[spookyevilone.livejournal.com]

.. chain length fence.. through.. hands? O.O Ow!