Fortunately, for most of us, visits to the Emergency Room (ER) at a hospital are few and far between. However, if you do find you or one of your loved ones ends up in the ER, here’s some health news you may be interested in. According to recent study performed by researchers at the Mayo Clinic, you should try to participate in the health decisions that are made while you’re in the ER.
Obviously this is not easy health advice to follow when you feel ill enough to be admitted to ER. But consider the results of the Mayo Clinic study. A research team conducted a systematic review to evaluate patient involvement in ER. Eligible studies described and assessed at least one of the following outcomes: patient knowledge; experiences and perspectives on participating in treatment or management decisions; clinician or patient satisfaction; preference for involvement and/or degree of engagement in decision-making and treatment preferences; and clinical outcomes (e.g., rates of hospital admission/readmission, rates of medical or surgical interventions).
The research team found studies highlighting four areas of ER care: management options for children with small lacerations; options for rehydrating children with vomiting or diarrhea or both; risk of bacteria in the blood (and associated complications), tests, and treatment options; and short-term risk of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) in adults with low-risk, non-traumatic chest pain.
Overall, the researchers found that patient engagement in decision-making was associated with the following:
— Improvements in patients’ knowledge and satisfaction with the explanation of their care
— Reduced health care use without evidence of harm
To speed your recovery during an ER visit, participate in your healthcare decisions. If you can’t do this, get someone you trust to take this job on. Don’t forget, it may still be possible to get your doctor’s advice at this point, too. Recovering quickly with the least complications is the goal here.
For more advice about how to speed up your recovery when you’re admitted to hospital, read the article, Tips for Getting the Best Hospital Treatment.