Natala la la la ... ... ...

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Sunday, December 12, 2004

ER ramblings 



I spent part of the morning today in the ER. I sliced my toe on a piece of martini-glass last night during pre-party preparations. oh my. this morning i went to the ER to have the slice checked out because it was still bleeding every now and then and that seemed to be inconvenient given that although i love to wear flip-flops, i also really need to be able to wear shoes.

spending a slightly-hungover morning in the ER is just as fun as it sounds (i.e. not very). I learned a few valuable things from the experience:

- when you can drive yourself to the ER, take the time to stop at starbucks for a coffee and pick up the newspaper or bring some magazines. The ER does not offer magazines or drinks. I actually ventured out to get something to read and sadly ended up with USA today. They don't even publish on the weekends -- instead they offer a Fri-Sat-Sun edition. I kid not. I recommend also packing your ipod.

- ER = waiting, unless you are visibly bleeding. If you've got anything that's semi-serious (which i didn't) it's probably better to call for an ambulance. When you arrive in an ambulance -- no matter your state -- you get taken to the front of the line. Obviously, my condition was not ambulance worthy, but had it been slightly more serious (i.e. if i had wanted to go to the ER last night when my toe was bleeding profusely) it would have been most efficient to pay the $50 ambulance transport fee and be first in line.

- You can't get stitches on wounds that are over 4 hours old. This was my case. If they stitch you up after that time period it is likely that they will trap bacteria and that's bad. Instead of actual stitches I got a "butterfly" (i.e. topical) stitch -- basically they *glued* on sterile strips to keep my wound closed. I'll add that my wound was considered (by both myself and the medical staff) to be superficial.

- be nice to the staff and espy. your nurse. Your entry into the ER room (as opposed to the waiting room) is dependent on order and severity of injury. However, once you get into the ER (i.e. you're assigned a "bed") they have some flexibility as to when they will see you. I had brunch scheduled at 2:30 so I kinda wanted to keep to my schedule. At one point I asked my nurse if I should reschedule my appt. and (because he liked me) he was able to get the doctor over as an "inbetween." This meant i was able to leave quicker than expected AND i made brunch. Yeah!

¤ posted by Natala : 12/12/2004 07:56:00 PM


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