MHKH 2/27/15

MHKH 2/27/15

Responsibilities:

• Go to ER
• Follow a nurse there
• Make sure a patient was comfortable
• Bring said patient blankets

New Knowledge/Skills:

• Learned that EKG's can help determine if a patient is getting better or worse
• Learned how to evaluate those measurements
• Learned what problems are indicated by the measurements.

Best Thing(s):

• Got to see a patient with some severe head trauma.
• Got to see EMT's bring in another patient afterwards.
• Got to see evaluation of the site of injury.

Worst Thing(s):

• First nurse I met really didn't look like he wanted me around
• Had to wait forever to see any real medical emergencies
• Patient went in for a CT scan and I didn't get to see the results.

The week went pretty well overall. I got to see a patient who needed care, learned a few things here and there, and helped out as best I could.

Technology:

The ER uses a lot of different technology to keep patients in stable condition and monitor their status. EKG's are everywhere to monitor a patient's vitals. There is a a crash cart with an AED for emergency use. There is also a portable x-ray machine to be used around the department.

Diagnostic Procedures:

The ER performs a large amount of diagnostic procedures to evaluate patients. Vitals are constantly recorded to make sure there is no change in a patient's condition. X-rays are taken to check for fractures and and breaks. EKG readings are examined for any sort of change.

Therapeutic Procedures:

The ER also has a lot of therapeutic procedures to keep a patient calm and stable.

Pain medications can be administered to reduce pain. Local anesthesia can be used to numb the site of the injury. Oxygen can be administered to patients who may have lung issues.

Diseases/Disorders:

There are a lot of different injuries and diseases that go through the ER. There was a woman who came in after an accident at work with some severe head trauma. There was a woman who came in with COPD and came in saying that she could barely breathe.

Med Terms/Abbreviations:

The ER is usually full of medical jargon that some people may not understand.  COPD- chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder is a disease in the lungs in which prolonged damage, like from smoking, makes it increasingly difficult to breathe. Head trauma is any injury to the head, scalp, or brain. BAC- blood alcohol concentration which shows the amount of alcohol running in the blood stream.

I. Environmental Assessment:

The ER is shaped like an oval so that all patients are in the vicinity of the nurses at the nurses station in the middle of the room. The place smells like sanitizers and cleansers of all sorts. There is also the smell of thin mint cookies because the department just got a delivery of those.  There is the constant sound of an EKG going and footsteps here and there. The staff was rather unresponsive to my arrival, especially the nurse who was to supervise me. The ER provides emergency care to patients based on the level of injury that is present and how many other patients are in. The ER is equipped with IV feeds, EKG's, portable x-ray machines, and ventilators.

II. Observation:

The people who work here are constantly busy and it didn't really surprise me when they ignored my presence after entering the ER. They all work well together and communicate rather effectively because of the size of the room in which phones aren't needed to communicate. They handle one job if it's too big or take turns sharing the work. The ER has a crash cart in case of an emergency, fire extinguishers if there is ever a fire, and several fire exits for precaution. The ER has diagnostic procedures that consist of taking vitals, evaluating EKG readings, checking patients charts and injuries, making sure what medications are needed. Therapeutic procedures that occur are administration of pain medications, local anesthetics, and other things to make a patient feel comfortable.

III. Knowledge:

Learned that EKG readings can help determine a patient's condition and if that condition is bettering or worsening. Learned how it is that the condition is determined from the readings. Leaned that there was a patient with head trauma who may have been going into shock because she felt cold constantly. I learned that the patient who came in with COPD also had a relatively high BAC.

IV: Evaluation:

I think the ER is a great place to learn all sorts of skills because of the wide variety of medical cases and injuries that come through. The department is full of knowledge and learning experiences every day. It really teaches a person how to deal with a stressful situation and teamwork in this kind of environment. I hope everyone has a chance to see something relatively crazy here.