Sometimes, a medical situation is too serious or too life-threatening to be treated in a regular doctor’s office. When this is the case, the Emergency Room at the hospital is a resource you can use in order to receive the care you need.
Before you receive emergency care, it’s important to understand that only emergencies are to be treated there. About 100 million people visit the ER each year, yet only about half of those visits actually require emergency care.
What Constitutes an Emergency?
Some situations that warrant emergency care include, but are not limited to, the following:
Signs of a heart attack that last more than two minutes. These include chest pains, arm and jaw pain.
Signs of stroke. These include numbness in any part of the body.
Severe shortness of breath.
Loss of consciousness. This is often the result of a head injury, which can result in a much more serious condition.
Bleeding from an artery that comes in spurts or bleeding that won’t stop after 10 minutes of direct pressure
Ingesting poisonous substances
Complicated fractures
A major injury to the head
Coughing up or vomiting blood
A severe reaction to a medication or an insect bite. This does not mean just a rash; in that case, call the doctor or visit an urgent care facility. If the reaction includes severe shortness of breath or if the symptoms become worse, it should be treated as an emergency.
What Does Not Require Emergency Care?
The following situations are generally not considered emergencies and can instead be treated at a doctor’s office or urgent care unit:
Earache.
Minor cuts or animal bites in which the bleeding is controlled.
A broken bone. This is only if you call your doctor and he can treat you the same day. If the bone is showing or the limb looks deformed, then you should go to the ER.
A sprain.
A skin rash.
Fevers (if you experience a convulsion, you should go to the ER).
Coughs and sore throats.
Maximizing Your Emergency Treatment
If you do have to receive emergency care, there are a number of things you can do to get the best, most effective treatment and reduce your chances of having to go back:
Tell the truth. It’s important to be completely honest when receiving medical care, no matter how embarrassing the situation may seem. If you are not completely honest with your health providers, a wrong diagnosis could result. It’s also important to be honest about current conditions, such as STDs or HIV, as well as anything you may have ingested, like drugs or alcohol. If necessary, you can ask for privacy if you need it (i.e, if you’re pregnant and you don’t want your companion to know, or if you smoked and you don’t want your mother to know).
Take someone along. Unless you are being transported in an ambulance, you should always take someone with you. You might be given drugs that make you unable to drive home, and it also helps the patient remain calm when there is someone else there. Many times as well, the patient may not be able to clearly explain or remember what happened.
If your condition changes while you’re waiting, tell someone. If you visit the ER for chest pains, for example, if suddenly they get worse or if they are accompanied by nausea or dizziness, tell the nurse immediately.
Emergency care is a valuable resource, and it’s important to know what constitutes an emergency so you know which resources to utilize.