Some Things I’ve Learned in the ER (So Far)

In my few years in the ER, I’ve learned a few things.

  • don’t sleep on the train tracks
  • 68 year olds should not do cocaine
  • some people want to be miserable
  • true love does still exist
  • the will to live can be brutal
  • 2 minutes of CPR can wear you out
  • sometimes TPA works, sometimes it doesn’t
  • “elderly fall” = ticking time bomb
  • esophageal varices is an ugly way to die
  • the former drug addict with mouth sores may just need a hug and be told she’s beautiful
  • it’s ok to tell the patient’s spouse to call the children
  • just because someone is “being dramatic” doesn’t mean there isn’t something horribly wrong
  • never let an hypotensive GI bleed out of bed
  • always check to see if the patient who’s been in the ER awhile is diabetic
  • withdrawals ARE life threatening
  • sometimes the dementia patient who has been in the ER a few days waiting for long – term placement needs to go on a “field trip” outside
  • we don’t only take care of law-abiding citizens
  • firemen are awesome
  • a stretcher carrying a 350 lb man with a tech doing compressions rolled over ones toe will break said toe…
  • every shift I learn something new
  • it takes a team to care for the sick, and I’ve got the BEST one!

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