I'm waiting for this one to come to RehabLand

My ER nurse colleagues can tell you it's a common way to get out of the ER--go AMA when you don't hear what you want to hear, or when you hear you'll go to jail, or get a bill.

Now, instead of all those things, we have ebola showing up in ERs around the US, thanks to the marvels of modern transportation. 

Add them together and all you get is trouble.

That is all...stay tuned.

You the citizen, decide!

Yes, we have a show in RehabLand that has a reporter who goes out and "exposes" local government and administrative hot messes on a regular basis.

It's a good thing he doesn't visit too many hospitals, or the Hotel Rehab's parent hospital (Washington) would be on his show.

One of our patients was getting discharged, but the "approved" transportation method to get him home was denied at the last moment because Mr. X. was not eligible for that type of travel due to his insurance.

Cost to discharge Mr. X as requested:
$500.

Cost to Washington to keep Mr. X until he CAN get "approved" travel:
$2000.

Cost of "approved" travel available tomorrow:
$12 (payable by patient, not hospital).

Difference to keep patient an extra day to get his $12 travel:
Cost of $1500 to the hospital. (And extra food, laundry, and maybe an ER diversion or two...)

Cost of patient going AMA because he's so p*&sed off  over the administrative idiocy of the hospital and wants to get to his wife's birthday party:
PRICELESS

As that reporter says, "You the citizen, decide...was it worth it?"

Some hospital genius needs a good ol' dope slap...

Taking some advice

Mondays are a blast at the Hotel. I'm always in for a surprise or two. Today's menu included:

1. Two pieces of equipment down. Guess who got to resolve their issues...me! Why? We were short tech folks today.

2. I get the call, "you need to go to xx clinic". No biggie. Was going over that way anyway. Since most of their patients are on holiday (or just didn't bother to schedule an appointment), it was dead slow, which gave me plenty of time to talk to the nursing supervisor, etc.

3. While I was at a meeting today, one of the docs told me, "Haven't you toughed out that cold long enough? I think it's time for a Z-pack." Off I go at lunch to call my PCP.

4. I miss an afternoon meeting. Why? Well, a patient who just needed "one little thing done" stayed for an hour. I couldn't resolve his issue, so he called two 800 numbers and then one transferred him three times until he got someone who took his info and will have to call him back.

I wasn't too upset on the last one. That would have been one meeting too many today.

And finally, I got to call our clerk to figure out where one patients ride was. It seems he/she called earlier, but had been roaming around waiting for the ride to no avail. I left and they still hadn't come.

So I gave the patient the ombudsman number and directions to the nurses' station, so they would make sure he/she was off without a hitch.

Tomorrow, thankfully, is another day. And so it goes...

Stay tuned!