WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.300 I'm gonna tell you a story that's gonna make you really mad. 00:00:02.301 --> 00:00:05.141 It's a EMS call that I had, like, 2, 00:00:05.142 --> 00:00:09.741 3 years ago, and it showed me that day why I want to become a nurse. 00:00:09.742 --> 00:00:12.781 I want to become a nurse, which I'm in nursing school for right now, 00:00:12.782 --> 00:00:16.401 to work with EMS and believe them when they say, 00:00:16.402 --> 00:00:18.221 I feel like my patient's gonna die, 00:00:18.222 --> 00:00:19.541 something is really wrong. 00:00:19.542 --> 00:00:22.241 Because in my case, on this call, 00:00:22.340 --> 00:00:25.420 that did not happen. We were not working as a team. 00:00:25.421 --> 00:00:27.061 They didn't give a shit about this patient, 00:00:27.062 --> 00:00:29.181 and she died in the waiting room, okay? 00:00:29.182 --> 00:00:30.541 And it literally crushed me 00:00:30.542 --> 00:00:33.661 because I told her mom when we got to the hospital, 00:00:33.662 --> 00:00:34.861 things were gonna be better, 00:00:34.862 --> 00:00:37.261 and they weren't. And that is not okay. 00:00:37.262 --> 00:00:39.801 So here we go. I'm gonna tell you how everything went. 00:00:39.960 --> 00:00:44.060 One night, I got dispatched to a call for a 34 year old female 00:00:44.061 --> 00:00:46.481 who is just extremely weak. 00:00:46.540 --> 00:00:48.460 Her mom says she doesn't know what's wrong. 00:00:48.461 --> 00:00:49.941 She just can't get out of bed. 00:00:49.942 --> 00:00:52.501 And so that was it. She was just extremely fatigued, 00:00:52.502 --> 00:00:53.221 couldn't get out of bed. 00:00:53.222 --> 00:00:56.201 So we go there thinking it's gonna be a fairly simple call. 00:00:56.460 --> 00:00:58.980 When we get there, I go up to the girl and. 00:00:58.981 --> 00:00:59.821 And the mom is, like, 00:00:59.822 --> 00:01:02.261 very frantic. And that's normal for, like, 00:01:02.262 --> 00:01:05.741 families calling 9 1 1. It's the worst a day of their life. 00:01:05.742 --> 00:01:06.981 You know, we see this all the Time. 00:01:06.982 --> 00:01:08.221 But it's their emergency, 00:01:08.222 --> 00:01:11.881 so it's okay to be frantic and to be concerned about your loved one. 00:01:12.180 --> 00:01:15.180 This girl had significant health problems, 00:01:15.181 --> 00:01:16.621 and I'm not gonna state them all, 00:01:16.622 --> 00:01:18.161 but there were a lot of them. 00:01:18.260 --> 00:01:20.700 And she was, for the past, 00:01:20.701 --> 00:01:22.741 like, three or three or three or four days, 00:01:22.742 --> 00:01:25.101 feeling really, really weak and really, 00:01:25.102 --> 00:01:28.161 really cold and having really bad abdominal pain. 00:01:28.460 --> 00:01:31.380 So I assess her, and I realize as I'm touching her, 00:01:31.381 --> 00:01:34.101 she is frozen, but the house is, like, warm, 00:01:34.102 --> 00:01:36.201 so she's not perfusing correctly. 00:01:36.440 --> 00:01:38.880 And so I'm like, is she on any medications? 00:01:39.060 --> 00:01:41.060 All that kind of stuff? Moms like, yeah, 00:01:41.061 --> 00:01:41.741 she's on this, this, 00:01:41.742 --> 00:01:42.941 and this, but nothing that, like, 00:01:42.942 --> 00:01:44.781 cause any concern, you know, 00:01:44.782 --> 00:01:45.901 nothing that she could have, like, 00:01:45.902 --> 00:01:47.141 overdosed on, nothing. 00:01:47.142 --> 00:01:50.061 You know? So I try and get the girl to wake up, 00:01:50.062 --> 00:01:50.821 and she's, like, 00:01:50.822 --> 00:01:53.141 barely with it. And now I know there are. 00:01:53.142 --> 00:01:54.941 There's something really, really wrong here. 00:01:54.942 --> 00:01:56.901 Okay? And tell the paramedic, 00:01:56.902 --> 00:01:58.021 I was like, she's, like, 00:01:58.022 --> 00:02:00.381 barely with it. I don't know what's going on with her. 00:02:00.382 --> 00:02:01.781 Check her vitals. But the vitals, 00:02:01.782 --> 00:02:04.261 they seem fine. And so paramedic was like, 00:02:04.262 --> 00:02:05.881 we're just gonna get her out in the ambulance. 00:02:06.020 --> 00:02:07.940 Tells the mom, we're gonna take good care of her. 00:02:07.941 --> 00:02:08.981 We're gonna get her to the hospital, 00:02:08.982 --> 00:02:10.321 and you can follow us over. 00:02:10.500 --> 00:02:12.500 And I noticed, as we're, like, 00:02:12.501 --> 00:02:16.101 getting her clothes on, her back is like, 00:02:16.102 --> 00:02:18.901 it looks like as if Someone had died, and. 00:02:18.902 --> 00:02:20.641 And all that blood is pooling. 00:02:20.840 --> 00:02:22.660 It's all pulled into her back. 00:02:22.661 --> 00:02:23.741 And I show the paramedic, like, 00:02:23.742 --> 00:02:26.141 what the fuck is this? I've never seen that in a. 00:02:26.142 --> 00:02:27.981 In a living being before. He's like, 00:02:27.982 --> 00:02:29.501 I don't know. That's really weird. 00:02:29.502 --> 00:02:32.941 So we get her into the ambulance on the stretcher, 00:02:32.942 --> 00:02:34.821 and this girl, because we moved her, 00:02:34.822 --> 00:02:36.761 her pain is so much worse. 00:02:36.860 --> 00:02:38.420 And he. We are very far out. 00:02:38.421 --> 00:02:40.461 So he's like, I'm just gonna fly us over there. 00:02:40.462 --> 00:02:41.581 And I'm like, thinking, 00:02:41.582 --> 00:02:43.861 maybe you should have taken this call first of all, 00:02:43.862 --> 00:02:45.981 but that's okay, because I got her back, 00:02:45.982 --> 00:02:48.741 all right? So vitals are still fine. 00:02:48.742 --> 00:02:51.301 Everything's fine except for the fact that she's freezing, 00:02:51.302 --> 00:02:55.861 she's purple, and the fact that her stomach is hurting so bad. 00:02:55.862 --> 00:02:58.581 So I'm thinking bowel obstruction, probably. 00:02:58.582 --> 00:03:01.901 So I go into the ER, and the nurse, 00:03:01.902 --> 00:03:04.301 who determines whether she goes into a room 00:03:04.302 --> 00:03:06.741 or she goes into the waiting room, says, oh, 00:03:06.742 --> 00:03:09.541 she can go into the waiting room before I even explained. 00:03:09.542 --> 00:03:10.341 And I said, no, 00:03:10.460 --> 00:03:12.100 I have a really bad feeling about this. 00:03:12.101 --> 00:03:13.101 Like, a really bad one. 00:03:13.102 --> 00:03:15.821 I feel like she is not gonna make it very long. 00:03:15.822 --> 00:03:18.761 Like something's wrong. And I know her vitals are normal, 00:03:18.880 --> 00:03:20.180 but something isn't right. 00:03:20.181 --> 00:03:21.381 The nurse goes, no, 00:03:21.382 --> 00:03:23.661 she's 34 years old. She just being dramatic. 00:03:23.662 --> 00:03:24.781 She probably wants payments. 00:03:24.782 --> 00:03:25.381 I said, no, 00:03:25.382 --> 00:03:27.461 I don't. I don't get that from this Girl at all. 00:03:27.462 --> 00:03:28.921 I think she's being genuine. 00:03:29.060 --> 00:03:31.380 And so I talked to the doctor, 00:03:31.381 --> 00:03:32.701 and I said, can you assess her? 00:03:32.702 --> 00:03:35.461 He assesses her, and he does the same thing the nurse did. 00:03:35.462 --> 00:03:36.381 He goes, hmm, 00:03:36.382 --> 00:03:37.541 I think she's a drug seeker, 00:03:37.542 --> 00:03:39.901 and she's been here quite a few times for different issues. 00:03:39.902 --> 00:03:42.441 And I'm like, I don't think that's the case. 00:03:42.580 --> 00:03:43.700 Something is wrong with her. 00:03:43.701 --> 00:03:45.421 You can even see it on her skin. 00:03:45.422 --> 00:03:47.381 That's not normal. Something's wrong. 00:03:47.382 --> 00:03:51.001 And no one listen. So I was forced to put her in the waiting room. 00:03:51.060 --> 00:03:53.500 I tell her mother, keep an eye on her. 00:03:53.501 --> 00:03:54.861 If anything happens, 00:03:54.862 --> 00:03:58.141 tell that nurse up there and make a big deal about it. 00:03:58.142 --> 00:04:00.941 So they take you back. And so the mom was like, okay. 00:04:00.942 --> 00:04:01.741 And she's just, like, 00:04:01.742 --> 00:04:04.381 crying because she's in the waiting room with her really sick daughter. 00:04:04.382 --> 00:04:08.141 And I'm fucking stressed out of my mind because I gotta leave her. 00:04:08.142 --> 00:04:10.261 I don't wanna leave her, but I have to. 00:04:10.262 --> 00:04:13.381 So I leave the girl, and as I'm leaving, 00:04:13.382 --> 00:04:17.061 I see her slouch over. And so I tell the nurse again, hey, 00:04:17.062 --> 00:04:17.541 she's, like, 00:04:17.542 --> 00:04:19.461 slouched over, barely with it, 00:04:19.462 --> 00:04:20.381 but, like, 00:04:20.382 --> 00:04:21.581 are you gonna do anything? 00:04:21.582 --> 00:04:22.941 No, nothing. 00:04:22.942 --> 00:04:25.541 She can wait. I think she's gonna pass out. 00:04:25.542 --> 00:04:27.261 Doesn't matter. She's being dramatic. 00:04:27.262 --> 00:04:28.901 She's been here many times before, 00:04:28.902 --> 00:04:31.301 which is the worst thing you can think in healthcare, 00:04:31.302 --> 00:04:33.201 because that's the thing that always gets you. 00:04:33.220 --> 00:04:34.860 The people who have Come in a lot for, like, 00:04:34.861 --> 00:04:37.701 chronic issues. You think it's just the same thing going on, 00:04:37.702 --> 00:04:39.501 but it's actually something way worse. 00:04:39.502 --> 00:04:41.321 Which was this case. All right, 00:04:41.500 --> 00:04:46.100 I find out a few days later because my husband works with newspaper. Um, 00:04:46.101 --> 00:04:48.961 her obituary was in the newspaper. 00:04:49.020 --> 00:04:52.460 She had died in the waiting room of that hospital. 00:04:52.461 --> 00:04:53.781 No one came to check on her. 00:04:53.782 --> 00:04:56.401 She died, and she was only 34. 00:04:56.540 --> 00:05:00.380 This is why we as healthcare workers need to listen to one another. 00:05:00.381 --> 00:05:02.621 When someone says, I think something is wrong, 00:05:02.622 --> 00:05:04.101 at least investigate it. 00:05:04.102 --> 00:05:06.861 And if you are too burnt out and you are too tired to do that, 00:05:06.862 --> 00:05:09.741 then leave the field or take a really long fucking break. 00:05:09.742 --> 00:05:12.661 Because people are dying every single day because of this issue 00:05:12.662 --> 00:05:15.301 that happened to me multiple times up. 00:05:15.302 --> 00:05:16.621 Deaths that could have been prevented 00:05:16.622 --> 00:05:18.441 if they were taken seriously sooner. 00:05:18.460 --> 00:05:20.420 Okay, not everybody's drug seeking. 00:05:20.421 --> 00:05:23.421 Not everybody has Munchausen or whatever you think they do. 00:05:23.422 --> 00:05:25.261 They have actual chronic illnesses, 00:05:25.262 --> 00:05:27.321 and they know their bodies more than you do. 00:05:27.322 --> 00:05:28.921 So take things seriously. 00:05:28.940 --> 00:05:31.420 And I know that we get a lot of bullshit in this field. 00:05:31.421 --> 00:05:33.341 I know that there are a lot of fakers 00:05:33.342 --> 00:05:34.801 and there are a lot of drug seekers, 00:05:34.860 --> 00:05:36.660 but it's better to be safe than sorry. 00:05:36.661 --> 00:05:40.261 And if someone who actually is seen death left and right is saying, 00:05:40.262 --> 00:05:42.201 I think my patient's gonna die, 00:05:42.260 --> 00:05:44.860 then listen to them. We need To work together, 00:05:44.861 --> 00:05:47.041 or else. We're not helping anyone. 00:05:47.060 --> 00:05:48.500 We're not helping anyone. 00:05:48.501 --> 00:05:51.081 That poor mother has to live the rest of her life 00:05:51.100 --> 00:05:52.660 thinking that she didn't do enough, 00:05:52.661 --> 00:05:54.241 that she didn't call quicker. 00:05:54.260 --> 00:05:57.260 That poor girl suffered to the very end. 00:05:57.261 --> 00:05:57.861 And, yes, 00:05:57.862 --> 00:06:01.041 it was a severe bowel obstruction that ended her life. 00:06:01.460 --> 00:06:06.460 It's so heartbreaking, but it's the reality of healthcare nowadays. 00:06:06.461 --> 00:06:08.061 And so I am in nursing school 00:06:08.062 --> 00:06:11.141 to possibly change at least one person's life 00:06:11.142 --> 00:06:13.861 if this ever happens, and advocate for them. 00:06:13.862 --> 00:06:17.581 And that's what all you nursing students and doctors need to be doing, 00:06:17.582 --> 00:06:19.061 is advocating, advocating, 00:06:19.062 --> 00:06:21.401 advocating, investigating for your patients. 00:06:21.540 --> 00:06:23.660 Don't just send them out to a waiting room 00:06:23.661 --> 00:06:25.341 when you don't know anything that's going on 00:06:25.342 --> 00:06:26.961 and not even check on them. 00:06:27.540 --> 00:06:29.219 Okay? That's all I gotta say.