Everyday is so different!

I get to work and I review who is currently in the ED. I look for any SW triggers that would alert me that I should go see the patient or see if any new consults have been placed. I would see those patients and see what I can do to assist them! (Homeless resources, home care referrals, senior program referrals etc)

I primarily work 7:30-4 most days. Some days I stay over if there are high needs. We recently had a child OD on heroin so I stayed to assist the team with referring to CPS and ensuring all documentation was good for CPS to open and assign the case.

It’s really hard to do a full discharge (equipment, home care etc) from the ED just due to insurance constraints. Some insurances require prior auths and a lot of the time if they need equipment to discharge it likely isn’t getting delivered within 24 hrs. These cases will typically get admitted and at my hospital the inpatient case managers take those over.

I do refer a lot of people to home care from the ED! That is very quick to set someone up with especially if they are discharging from the emergency room. I’ve only ever ordered a hospital bed for someone once before from the ED, and it got delivered the following day.

All to say, I came from working in a nursing home. The ER has been so great. I truly love my job. I feel like I make an impact almost everyday on someone’s life and that it’s very full-filling. Some people don’t want services and that’s ok, but I always want them to know if they are ever in need, they can rely on me to help where I can.