Deciding to go to the ER

[Guest guest]

Laurie,

You wrote, " I feel like I am not connected with the world, that I am just

getting through the day as my life is being sucked out of me...When do I know

that it is time to ask for help from an urgent care or emergency department? "

I understand the feelings you are having. When I hurt so bad, day after day,

I can barely get out of bed, I mosey from bed to computer to bathroom to bed

to kitchen, etc., but I don't interact with the outside world. One day runs

into the next. It is depressing and it feeds my depression. It begins a viscous

cycle of self isolation. I have to make a conscious effort to pull myself out

of the house, pain, nausea, or not.

We have posted before about the most appropriate way to obtain assistance

from an Emergency Room. You might pull up some archives. The one suggestion we

have made is to not just show up in an ER without calling your PCP or GI doctor

first and asking them to pave the way to make your transition through triage

as easy as possible. If they call and tell the ER doctors that you are their

patient and that you have a history of Chronic Pancreatitis, and that you called

them because you were no longer able to manage your pain and nausea at home

with oral medication, and they told you to go to the ER and they would call

ahead and give treatment orders.

In the absence of being able to do that, you should get a letter form your GI

/ PCP stating you have Chronic Pancreatitis that you are managed at home with

oral medication, but on occasion you are unable to manage the pain and

nausea, and it is necessary to be seen in the ER for IVF and IV pain medication,

possible admitted to acute care. Most of us have a letter stating something like

this and they have been immensely helpful, to all parties involved.

Karyn E. , RN,

Exec. Director, PAI

*http://www.pancassociation.org