On Saturday I was in to the ER again. It was a pretty busy night once things got rolling! I was in for 7.5 hours, and on my feet for almost the whole time. The cases included a 10 week old puppy that swallowed a nut (like a nuts and bolts nut), a pom that ate chocolate (but not enough to need to vomit), a cat with a very low temp (92!) whom we also found out was in kidney failure, a dog with HGE (Hemorrhagic Gastroenteritis), a cat who was recovering from a blockage, an old dog who was being hospitalized overnight to euthanize in the morning when the family could come in, a dog with a huge splenic mass (diagnosed over 6 months ago), who had started to go downhill and we ended up euthanizing, a dog with a prolapsed rectum, and a patient whom I recognized from elsewhere.
The vet on staff was really good with explaining things to me between crises, and she told me about HGE in detail, which was very awesome for me. I love learning about new things, and HGE reminded me somewhat of the nature of IBS in humans... that is, it is more of a symptom than a cause, but there are ways to treat it (the symptom), and get it under control so that you can find the cause.
The diabetic dog (the one I recognized) was a very good lesson in client interaction. The owner is interesting. Her dog is 5.5 years old, HUGE, a diabetic, and has cataracts. She has spent a lot of money on him, getting him to an okay place, but is pretty bad with regulating his diabetes. They won't operate on the cataracts until his diabetes in under control, so the poor thing can't see too well. Her appointment at the ER was because the dog hadn't laid down all day and seemed very uncomfortable. The doctor spent a lot of time convincing her that because of his diabetes, it was really important to figure out what was going on. Once we were able to get bloodwork and urine on him, it showed that he had both pancreatitis and a UTI, very common things in diabetics. To convince her to let the dog be hospitalized was like pulling teeth. She obviously did not want to be separated from him. The vet had to explain at least 4 times why this was such a big deal and what needed to be done. Finally, she signed the estimate, remarking at different times, "It's all about the money isn't it?" "Did you read the article in the Times this morning? It's about hospitals ripping people off" and best of all, "It must have been those antibiotics Dr. Regular Vet put him on, they had to cause the UTI." She was a very grumpy woman, but she did what was right for the dog, and assured him she would be back at 6 am to check on him and visit with him.
What did this teach me? Patience. I think the ER is a wonderful place to see client interactions because it is a high-stress situation. The owners don't know what is wrong, are often unable, unwilling or unprepared for the fees, and they are emotional. It takes a special person to work in that environment and be able to calm them down, explain things to them at a level they can understand and accept, and sometimes even coax a smile. Quite often you are delivering awful news to owners, and being able to do so in the right manner can make all the difference. I have a lot of respect for it, and I hope that I am absorbing as much as I feel I am there.
~Melissa
No comments:
Post a Comment