Was BACK in E.R. last night..

[Jenn]

I'm sure ya'll are sick of hearing about my drama, but I have to ask ya'll what I should do. I wen't to the E.R. at 5:30pm last night because even with all the care I've given my wounds I could see they were getting very swollen, hot and VERY red....and EXTREMELY painful....(INFECTION!!)
Anyway, I get in there, they insist on doing a whole nother round of X-Rays and another CT of my head. 7 HOURS later, they come in tell me eveything looks fine, but now I have cellulitis starting in my knee and arm and my site's have to be debrided. OMG NO pain medication was EVER offered to me which I don't like to take it anyway, but when they cleaned out my wounds....I would have taken ANYTHING. So it was 2AM by they time I got home. The E.R. was dead, the Techs were RUDE. So, do I bother writing a letter of complaint and to whom would I write it? Would they even care? Not once was I asked if I needed anything, I sat in the room and stared at the wall in pain for 7 hours. Don't you go to the hospital for relief?? Oh, and finally, EVERYONE that heard I was in a biking accident told me to stay off of MOTORCYCLES!!!

[KnottedYet]

Did you ask for pain meds and they refused to give them to you?

What did they give you to take care of the cellulitis? (HipGnosis6 went through quite a merry-go-round with her biking wound)

That must be quite the intense road rash for them to assume it came from a MOTORcycle! Yowza!

Take care, rest, lots of fluids!

[crazycanuck]

(((((jenn))..Sorry to hear you had to revisit the ER. It's ok to post about it kiddo!

I'd write a little letter to the head of the ER or patient services stating perhaps the staff might want to treat the patients a tad bit better than they normally do. They're there to treat you properly and with a bit of respect last time I checked!

(((((((Jenn))))

Sorry if i've babbled...

C

[Jenn]

I asked for pain meds, and everytime the tech would say ok, let me go find someone, HOURS wen't by. So, I consider they did, but after hearing how they were talking about other patients at the Nurse station, they had people with chest pain in room so and so and forgot about...as they LAUGHED!
They put me on Keflex 4 a day for ten days and she did write me a script for Percocet which I'm finally going to HAVE to take at night just to sleep.

[limewave]

((((((((JEN))))))))))
Take care of yourself and keep a close watch on those wounds. It was smart of you to go to the ER. I've had cellulitis before and it turned out to be MRSA (deadly flesh eating bacteria). I had to have IV's and surgery and lots of antibiotics to get rid of the infection. If it doesn't start to get better in 24 hours, I would go to the doctor again.

[Shiraz]

Jen,
First, I am so sorry to hear of your accident. I hope you start to feel better soon. Cellulitis is not to be messed around with so please keep a close watch on the size of the red area and your temp. Watch closely to see if the area gets bigger. Many times we will mark the area so you can see if it decreases or increases.

Second, I am a Pediatric Nurse Manager and still work the floor and am so sorry to hear that you did not receive compassionate care in a hospital. As a nurse manager, if this occurred on my floor I would want to hear from you. YOU are the patient and YOU are the paying customer. You should have been offered pain medication and asked what your pain score was before, during and after cares. You should have been offered pain medication and not had to ask for it. This is basic nursing and is a JCAHO requirement. Scoring pain is the 5th vital sign (along with your temp, heart rate, resp rate and BP). I would suggest you call and ask to talk to the Nurse Manager and if you receive a survey in the mail asking about your care please feel it out and return it. I take all comments good and bad back to staff and talk to individual nurses about how they are perceived from the patients perpective. I frequently remind them about what is said from the nurses station is frequently heard by the parents and patients.

I hope you feel better soon!!!!

[Jenn]

They asked me my pain scale when I walked in and I told them an 8 because the area was getting so red, hot and swollen.....and they did nothing.
Thank you for the information, I'm watching the sites, they seem to be not as big and red and hot today.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Hey Jenn,
Step back and look at the big picture- no concussion, no broken bones or cracked skull, didn't get RUN OVER by the car that turned in front of you. Bike is ok too. I'd say you were pretty lucky- this time.
You'll probably be on your bike again in a couple of weeks!

Good that you went and had your wounds cleaned by the pros, and good that you had more xrays just to be sure they hadn't missed anything.

Jenn, just a little helpful suggestion- you don't have to start a whole new thread every time you have something to update about your accident- unless it's a major new turn of events or something. There are now four threads about your crash, and it's getting confusing to keep up with it all.

[rij73]

POOR YOU! That's just awful... I've been on jury duty for last 2 weeks hearing a case of medical malpractice. Part of it has to do with hospital care and wound infection. All I can tell you is that I've learned through this case that you have to demand your needs be met even if it means screaming your head off. You also need to demand that certain things be written in your chart if you think there's any chance that anyone is being neglectful.

Take very GOOD CARE of yourself and watch those wounds. I'm learning all about how nasty wound infection can be... In spite of how you must hate the hospital right now, don't hesitate to rush in there at the slightest hint you might need help. Do you have decent relationship with any particular doctor? If so, they can help to expedite your case if you have to go in to the ER again.

[Jenn]

Hey Jenn,
Step back and look at the big picture- no concussion, no broken bones or cracked skull, didn't get RUN OVER by the car that turned in front of you. Bike is ok too. I'd say you were pretty lucky- this time.
You'll probably be on your bike again in a couple of weeks!

Good that you went and had your wounds cleaned by the pros, and good that you had more xrays just to be sure they hadn't missed anything.

Jenn, just a little helpful suggestion- you don't have to start a whole new thread every time you have something to update about your accident- unless it's a major new turn of events or something. There are now four threads about your crash, and it's getting confusing to keep up with it all.

Don't worry I won't be posting anymore.

[Zen]

Shiraz is correct when she said cellulitis is not to be taken lightly. When I contracted cellulitis and went to the ER I was immediately put on IV antibiotics. Did they run blood labs? You should probably go back to your primary care physician. She/he knows you personally and should be a bit more concerned, plus they don't have the time/pressure constraints of the ER.

Be assertive! You have to be your own patient advocate!!!

[mimitabby]

See if you can find an urgent care clinic near you. They are much less stressed
and they are better set up to take care of people like you.
A friend of mine who was an ER doctor for many years got tired of the shifts and t he stress and the numbers of doctors and nurses vs patients in ER and is now a happy camper working for an Urgent Care clinic.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Don't worry I won't be posting anymore.

I hope you don't mean like....FOREVER!!!???

Did I hurt your feelings?? I certainly didn't intend to. I was just trying to be positive and helpful.

[michelem]

Jenn,

Please don't stop posting just because of one person's comment (which, probably just came across the wrong way because it is through a post and not in person - for some reason, things can come across in ways not intended when done through e-mail or posts). We are rooting for you and want to hear from you, so please keep coming back . . .

[Python]

Oh, Jenn - more gentle (((Hugs)))

This is what I was afraid of with these abrasions. When I fell of my platform shoes years ago (in the 1970s) mine went septic and swelled up too. I can't remember the name of the dressing they put on me but it was covered in a creamy/sticky antibiotic goo. It took nearly two weeks for it to start healing up. The area was just where the worst part beside your elbow was. I couldn't bend my arm or even lift it above my head because it swelled up so much. I had to get help dressing and undressing for a while. Thankfully it made a full recovery although I did have some scarring for several months which eventually disappeared completely.

As for the way you were treated, I would most certainly complain and make sure you put it in writing and demand an explanation and an apology. It's the very least you deserve.

As for the pain meds, I don't like taking pills and potions either but sometimes we have to. They will make you feel better and help you to sleep. The body heals itself when it's sleeping.

I really hope you start to feel better very soon.