"No, I'm not letting her in the CT scanner," said the tech.
"She may have had a stroke," I said. "We need to do a scan."
"But she's got that rash."
"Yes, she has a rash. But she still needs a scan, now."
"I don't want her mucking up the machine and giving everyone else that rash."
"There's paper on the machine."
"Yeah, it's just paper. It's going to rip, or move, and she's going to rub against something else in here, and then whatever she has is going to spread. I won't take that risk. She's not getting a scan."
"I need to see if she had a stroke."
"Not in my machine."
"You want me to call the attending?"
"Fine. I'll tell him the same thing. You're worried about the one patient, but I'm worried about everyone else. And I don't want to touch her myself either, to be honest."
"Put gloves on!"
"Yeah, like that's enough."
"SHE NEEDS A SCAN."
"Wouldn't do it now even if I wanted to. I'm on break."
Thursday, December 2, 2010
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yikes. what happened in the end?
ReplyDeleteSounds about par for the course.
ReplyDeleteYou give the tech enough dialogue to make him sound reasonable, but in a hospital they should be able to find a way to let sick people use the facilities. Like say, sanitizer spray, or a blanket. Also, why did he have to make it a personal issue? It should be a matter of policy whether infectious people are allowed to use the machine or not.
ReplyDeleteIn this kind of situation you can sometimes get what you want without going up the chain by appearing to make a concession. Like, "OK, you're right, she's too rashy to be in the machine, but I'm going to ask her to wear two hospital gowns and keep her arms inside them, will that help?" Maybe paired with the threat of the attending, but now he can avoid that and save face at the same time (which is what he was trying to do by pretending he's going on break).
Jesus, Noumenon. Why do I get the feeling you ask permission before you ejaculate?
ReplyDeleteHuh? What was wrong with Noumenon's comment?
ReplyDeleteAlways so rational and measured. Zero sense of humor and almost as much personality.
ReplyDeleteThis is a blog, for fuck sake. Show some fire. And be brief about it!
I should add that, on the plus side, the advice is always good. Just boring.
ReplyDeleteI sure can't complain about getting unsolicited advice, now can I? Thanks for the feedback.
ReplyDelete