Tom Pierce is doing well as an inpatient and we hope to have him back home today if all goes well. So glad I took him to ER! Diverticulitis, early shock, Coumadin toxicity!? WTH!?! I just thought it was a stomach bug!? SO GRATEFUL for my awesome neighbors and friends Karen Drake Thompson Creighton Morris Hopmann (and their families) who took my kids last night and have been so supportive!! And for the quick return to health for Tom! I will say however that if a patient collapses at home and is then taken in the ER and has orthostatic hypotension to 90/40 when standing, I would expect a neuro exam to be performed prior to ordering of the head CT. Or some kind of physical exam. Or perhaps for the triage nurse or RNs notes that the patient takes Coumadin, based on the history they took, to be taken into account by the MD. Or, failing that, that the RN who got the history of PE and coumadin use talks to the MD, or that the MD asks about medications or past medical history or ill contacts, which in Toms case included a near-fatal PE in 2006 and a family contact with severe colitis in the previous week. It was an elephant and 6 blind men experience, and people seemed surprised when I would stall them on their way out of the room to fill in the important stuff they did not even ask about! We need to really, really work on teamwork and team communication in the medical setting, and on people having a thought process that makes sense and is thorough!! It makes me afraid for people who go to the ER that have no medical background!!! And, it makes me proud that I work in an academic medical system that, for all its shortcomings, requires all involved to be accountable for communicating well with patients and team members.
Posted on: Sun, 10 Nov 2013 19:06:52 +0000
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