Pandemic

It’s real. The number  of cases and deaths, and far flung appearances make it a real threat. I was in the emergency room this weekend with a family member. I was struck by  the poor communication  between patients  and  staff. I mean to say that that  most people presenting to the ER do a very poor job describing symptoms. “I feel weird” is really not useful information. It is  really difficult to  treat people  that are  not invested in the process. You are the person seeking treatment and should be prepared  to  assist with useful information. The Pandemic has me worried that  people will flock to already stressed ER’s  despite plenty of information on which symptoms are trouble. The Mayor of NYC  is  worried. Classify this as another one of my “on your own”  posts. You would get in and get out of an ER faster if you provided even simple to the point answers. “It  hurts!” “Is it a sharp pain or a deep dull ache” ” I dunno it hurts”. This sort of exchange will  trigger a host of tests which may(often are) unnecessary. It might  amaze you  but we are not all that different. Time of onset,   location and type of discomfort can actually be entered in a computer and generate an accurate diagnosis. I just typed that line then  had to check if it was true! I mean I assume it’s that’s easy, given good information from the  patient. So  I checked  and found this story from 1993.

http://www.nytimes.com/1993/06/13/nyregion/using-a-computer-to-diagnose-illnesses.html

Since we have a dearth  of Primary Care Physicians to service the onslaught in October. I suggest  you invest in the ER Triage  Kiosk  Company.

No lying about your level of pain  to jump the line!

Mike