FOR US, THE EMERGENCY NURSES As nurses, we have a tendency to minimize the impact we have for our patients and sometimes, even for each other. We support our patients, we take care of our team, all while maintaining a balance between work and living our lives. As an emergency room nurse, I have been fortunate enough to be a part of several great teams over the years, always knowing that when a crisis arises, I will never have to look for help because I am never alone. Emergency department nurses fall into an entirely seperate class in the profession. Over the years, I have had many social outings with several types of nurses. Inpatient nurses, clinic nurses, even intensive care nurses. When we talk about our shifts in the trenches, about the worst of the worst and the best of the best, the very idea of the emergency department setting illicits a multitude of responses from other nurses. Some respond with, Oh, I could never work in that type of chaos, knowing that they prefer schedules, precision, and maintaining a peaceful healing environment. Others are in awe of the emergency nurse that can deliver superior care to pediatric, geriatric, psychiatric, and med/surg patients simultaneously, without a second thought about the magnitude of knowledge needed just below the surface of thought in order to care for all those populations. Even in conversation with intensive care nurses, there was an inherent appreciation for the nurse who can rescusitate and stabilize a critically ill patient, staving off death, all while caring for two or three other patients at the same time. This is because the emergency nurse is a special breed of nurse. We create order in a world of chaos. We have the skills to recognize the difference between urgency and life threatening conditions, and prioritize our resources to give everyone the needed care in a timely manner. We never know how serious the next patient through the door could be, and yet we face it, head on, everyday. Why? Because we can do what no other type of person can do. We are here to literally save lives, and we take that responsibility very seriously. It gives us a sense of purpose and pride to guide a patient from pain and fear and deliver them to relief and answers. Through this chaos we navigate more turbulence than any nurse would typically endure. We receive misdirected anger and criticism from patients and families for not working quickly enough; we are accused of incompetence for not bending to the demands of an unknowledgeable patient about the need for narcotic or antibiotics. We graciously absorb the frustration and hostility over the ever increasing long waiting room times that we do our best to improve despite the upsurge in patient volumes. When the rest of the hospital tells the emergency department they are full or short staffed, we are the bearer of burden. We keep the admitted patients waiting for beds for horus and accept every patient checking in despite not having enough staff or space. Whether the patient population believes it or not, we do understand, and we do want to help. Organizing the chaotic environment is part of what makes the emergency nurse so unique and so respected. We provide guidance for patients on the worst day of their lives, and whether they remember our names or what we did for them, they know we were there to get them through the worst. We give them respect and dignity in futuile situations, and comfort families as if they are our own. We celebrate our successes, and keep our spirits high so that we can come back each day to the next shift where the unknown still waits. So when someone says, Happy Emergency Nurses Week, remember to smile and celebrate. We do so much for patients and each other that we dont realize, and we all deserve a little extra happiness in our lives. Kirk B.
Posted on: Sun, 12 Oct 2014 05:51:14 +0000
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