Unless someone is dying, they can wait for triage
Since I returned to the VA healthcare system in 2011 I've been a big fan. I'm still a fan but this week I got exposed to certain aspects of their system that really surprised me. This past Sunday I got there at 6:45 a.m. because I needed treatment for this upper respiratory infection that's been kicking my butt since last Friday. The sign on the check-in window reads "Between Midnight and Seven a.m., go through the door and check in with the ER desk."
I saw the sign and asked the guard to let me in. He refused. The security guard (whose name tag indicated his last name is Cox) told me that they'd just send me back up front to wait until 7 a.m. So I sat and waited an extra 20 minutes to begin being checked in. The person opening the triage desk didn't arrive until 7:05 a.m.
I got the treatment I needed and went home. But I got worse and I went back this morning. This time I got there at 6:00 a.m. I sat waiting outside the desk once I'd let them know I was there for ten minutes until a nurse who identified herself as "Ruth, the charge nurse" came out. She took my vitals. She promised me a breathing treatment and some water while I waited for the doctor to look me over. She put me in a bed and walked away.
About 20 minutes later I overheard her telling some of the other nurses that it was too close to shift change to take any additional patients and so "unless someone is dying, they can wait for triage" was what she said. I was understandably taken aback by this statement. Was this hyperbole? If someone came in who wasn't dying, but was bleeding, would they be made to sit and wait for 30 minutes?
Now I did not get seen by a doctor or given any water or anything else until 2.5 hours had passed. I'm okay with that. I was in discomfort but I was stable and given my medical history it takes time for a new doctor to bring themselves up to speed on my case. Once I was seen the doctors were attentive, a breathing treatment was administered, I got my water and they ran some tests.
I did get to spend 35 minutes waiting to be seen in the x-ray waiting room watching Jerry Springer's show and laughing as usual.
In the end there was nothing they could really do for me. They would have prescribed IV antibiotics if it had turned out I had pneumonia, as they originally suspected. But since it turned out not to be that particular ailment, they won't put me on antibiotics because of the risk of another bout with C-diff.
As I left the ER, the doctor told me to arrange for a follow-up with my primary care doctor in 2 days and I think what happened next may be part of the reason people have a perception that it's almost impossible to get treatment at a VA facility.
I walked to the primary care clinic on my way out and stopped at the counter to arrange an appointment for Friday. The clerk was very apologetic and pointed out that the next available appointment was for September 6th, and that I had an appointment of my own already on August 5th. But then he said the magic words. "Come in on Friday as a walk-in and you'll be seen that day."
Imagine that. Rather than walking away after being told there were no appointments for nearly two months, I found out there is a way to get the treatment I need, on the day that the doctor wanted me to be seen.
I saw the sign and asked the guard to let me in. He refused. The security guard (whose name tag indicated his last name is Cox) told me that they'd just send me back up front to wait until 7 a.m. So I sat and waited an extra 20 minutes to begin being checked in. The person opening the triage desk didn't arrive until 7:05 a.m.
I got the treatment I needed and went home. But I got worse and I went back this morning. This time I got there at 6:00 a.m. I sat waiting outside the desk once I'd let them know I was there for ten minutes until a nurse who identified herself as "Ruth, the charge nurse" came out. She took my vitals. She promised me a breathing treatment and some water while I waited for the doctor to look me over. She put me in a bed and walked away.
About 20 minutes later I overheard her telling some of the other nurses that it was too close to shift change to take any additional patients and so "unless someone is dying, they can wait for triage" was what she said. I was understandably taken aback by this statement. Was this hyperbole? If someone came in who wasn't dying, but was bleeding, would they be made to sit and wait for 30 minutes?
Now I did not get seen by a doctor or given any water or anything else until 2.5 hours had passed. I'm okay with that. I was in discomfort but I was stable and given my medical history it takes time for a new doctor to bring themselves up to speed on my case. Once I was seen the doctors were attentive, a breathing treatment was administered, I got my water and they ran some tests.
I did get to spend 35 minutes waiting to be seen in the x-ray waiting room watching Jerry Springer's show and laughing as usual.
In the end there was nothing they could really do for me. They would have prescribed IV antibiotics if it had turned out I had pneumonia, as they originally suspected. But since it turned out not to be that particular ailment, they won't put me on antibiotics because of the risk of another bout with C-diff.
As I left the ER, the doctor told me to arrange for a follow-up with my primary care doctor in 2 days and I think what happened next may be part of the reason people have a perception that it's almost impossible to get treatment at a VA facility.
I walked to the primary care clinic on my way out and stopped at the counter to arrange an appointment for Friday. The clerk was very apologetic and pointed out that the next available appointment was for September 6th, and that I had an appointment of my own already on August 5th. But then he said the magic words. "Come in on Friday as a walk-in and you'll be seen that day."
Imagine that. Rather than walking away after being told there were no appointments for nearly two months, I found out there is a way to get the treatment I need, on the day that the doctor wanted me to be seen.
posted by me at 3:02 PM
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