Monday, September 22, 2014

On call, Sunday morning, 2:38 a.m.

Dr. Grumpy: "This is Dr. Grumpy, returning a page."

Mrs. Insomnia: "Hi, I'm a patient of Dr. Brain, I saw him once, about 5 years ago."

Dr. Grumpy: "What can I do for you?"

Mrs. Insomnia: "Well for the last year or two I've been a little forgetful. You know, losing my keys, or going into a room and forgetting why I went there."

Dr. Grumpy: "Okay..."

Mrs. Insomnia: "I had dinner with my daughter tonight, and she suggested that maybe somewhere in that time I might have had a stroke. I didn't think much of it, but now I'm really wondering, and thought I better call Dr. Brain to see if I should go to the emergency room."

Dr. Grumpy: "How long did you say this has been going on?"

Mrs. Insomnia: "At least one year, maybe two."

Dr. Grumpy: "I'd just call Dr. Brain on Monday."

(mumbled conversation in background)

Mrs. Insomnia: "My daughter thinks I should go to ER, and she should know, because she works for a dentist. Anyway, we're on our way there now."

16 comments:

OMDG said...

That patient totally got admitted to my service yesterday for a rule out stroke workup.

Anonymous said...

He already knew what he was going to do, and yet he needed to wake you at 2 AM anyway. As long as it is "free" patients will call all hours of the day, and continue to also waste healthcare resources such as this unnecessary ER visit.

BendySadness said...

Well who would you trust, a neurologist or somebody who works for a dentist. Don't be silly Dr Grumpy. I mean, she works FOR a DENTIST!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for checking in with me first. You make a convincing case for gun control.

ndenunz said...

Anybody wanna bet an what the CAT scan showed?

The Patient Doc said...

They always call even though they already know what they want to do. Whenever they call I usually say one of two things:
1) come to my office tomorrow
2) go to ER

Anonymous said...

I'd submit the daughter to a lot of painful tests. Just to rule out any further misbehaviour...

Shellye said...

Who needs a doctor when your daughter works at a dentist's office?

I must admit, that's a little better than seeking medical advice from a guy at a garage sale, but not much better.

RageDino said...

So what exactly is the procedure if you go to the ER and say "I think I had a stroke 2 years ago"? Do they turn you away?

jade said...

Well, I'd better give you a call right now and get ready to leave to ER: I'm always looking for my keys, phone, children, socks, other very important stuff and it's been going on for quite a while now - What was your phone number again?? Hurry up, it's really urgent!
PS and thank you for cheering me up so often with your blog posts

Anonymous said...

"And he just told her not ten minutes ago to hang up the fucking phone and take me to the ER."

Anonymous said...

"My daughter also says that Sunday between 2:00 and 4:00 am is the best time in the ER to meet cute guys who smashed their cars up on the way home from the clubs."

Megan said...

Takes the cake for the most urgent (ahem) subacute stroke presentations.

Nurse Lilly said...

TPA! TPA! TPA!

Holly said...

Because obviously what my daughter thinks is an emergency on our part is an emergency on your part.

Really?? You've waited for 2 years and you can't wait 2 more days?

SMH

cliffintokyo said...

Perhaps the patient should also get the cavities in her brain filled by a dentist?

 
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