Unfortunately many Emergency Room patients end up in the hallway in gurneys.

See what this Karen gets when she demand to get a room before a critical patient does.

You don’t want to see the doctor right here? No problem.

I was an ER charge nurse a few years back at a busy facility. In order to increase capacity during busier times, we frequently would bring patients to hallway gurneys to be seen by the doctor. It’s not a great setup, literally just a journey in the hallway in front of the nursing desk. But, if the rooms are clogged with patients waiting on beds upstairs, etc. It’s a commonly used workaround.

But it’s far from ideal.

So, one night a few years back, we’re busy, and non-emergent patients are waiting for hours in the lobby. I am using hallway gurneys to increase throughput. I’m putting stable patients who don’t need cardiac monitors into the hallway. So, I bring the next patient from the lobby to a hall gurney. Let’s call her “Karen.”

Karen is complaining because she’s been waiting hours. Since American healthcare is all about kissing butt and patient satisfaction, I can’t tell her that she’s been waiting because her medical complaint would be dumb to take to urgent care, let alone an emergency room.

We get to the hallway spot and she pitches a fit. “I’ve been waiting for hours, I deserve to be in a room, not the hallway,” and other stuff like that. She sees an open doorway to an empty room and demands that we go there. I say that a different patient will be going into that room, and explain that Karen doesn’t need a cardiac monitor for her visit.

Karen crosses her arms and says something like, “I don’t care, that room is available, so you have to let me use it.” I had a department to run, and I was tired of her entitled nonsense. Pointing at the hallway gurney, I said, “Are you refusing to see the doctor in this space?”

Her entitlement kicks her in the face here.

Her eyes lit up, apparently thinking she had won, and Karen said, “YES, I won’t be seen right here!”

I said, “No problem.” I waved at the security guard a few yards away and said, “Hey Tom, this lady would like to leave now.” Karen looked shocked, then started saying she never said that.

I reminded her that she clearly stated that she refused to be seen in this bed and so she was going to have to continue to wait in the lobby until a room became available.

She tried to backtrack and said something like, “Fine, I’ll see the doctor here.” I just shook my head and said, “It’s too late for that. You have already refused. Tom will escort you back to the lobby and we’ll call you back to a room as soon as we can.”

Security walked her to the lobby, and she pretty quickly decided to just leave without being seen.

Here is what folks are talking about.

Triage is important! Karen didn’t care.

Maybe not the best approach, Mom.

It’s appalling how many people abuse the E.R.

Enjoy the waiting room magazines, Karen!

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