"ED nurse at Sir Charles Hospital"

Last week I visited SCGH Ed with my son, who struggles with serious mental distress at times. He asked that I take him to hospital.

Thankfully, the waiting area was all but empty. He was triaged and a red identity bracelet attached to his wrist. I believe this will alert staff to possible serious deterioration, which can happen on occasions.

We remained in the waiting area, as other patients came in and went through to the treatment area to be assessed. My son remained calm, no obvious agitation and we understand other people may be in serious difficulty, physically.

Almost two hours later he said he felt better and preferred to go home. I alerted the triage nurse of this and asked could they send a note of the circumstances to my son's clinic. It was explained that this was not the practice/protocol when a patient chooses to leave.  It is the clinic who manages the ongoing care of my son and the clinicians there need to have these histories. It alerts them to the ongoing emotional upset, that is part and parcel of his diagnosis and their response in treatment and care. 

The following day his case manager rang to say that the hospital had sent them a summary and that it is always helpful for them to know. 

I am most grateful to that nurse, who, on reflection, decided to action the summary. 

This week has been tough with his mental health.

For all concerned, that nurse's actions promoted the real collaboration, the real listening that families would like embedded. Thank you nurse - you make a difference for better outcomes, in changing the system to hear and be more reflective on how we listen and interact with each other.