Emergency room visits are not planned and leave you with little to no room for preparations. Nonetheless, a few measures can go a long way in speeding up care and facilitating better progress. You can bring certain things to the emergency room Spring to facilitate such care, which mainly revolves around the sudden change in your health or the cause of your emergency. Besides the usual identification document, health insurance, and credit card, here are some things that can make your emergency room visit more productive.
A list of medication
If you are on active prescription, taking over-the-counter, recreational, or illicit drugs, you must ensure that the healthcare provider gets the information. If you take more drugs or tend to forget, the list will help move things along much faster. The information helps shapes the care provided since some medication means certain treatments could put you in more danger considering how they react with others.
Medication could be the main reason you are in the emergency room, such as a potential overdose case, or you forgot to take the prescription and developed complications leading to sudden health changes. Besides medication, also bring personal assistance gadgets such as eyeglasses, hearing aids, speech devices, or a walker can help the doctor gain a quick glimpse into your medical history.
A list of allergies
Allergies can lead you to the emergency room. Even when the visit is not due to an allergic reaction, you should furnish the healthcare provider with a list of allergies. You could be allergic to medication like aspirin, penicillin, or sulfa drugs, which the doctor could be considering administering. With the information, they won’t follow treatments that can put you in more danger. Other allergies, such as those triggered by environmental allergens, food, insects, and latex, also help professionals tailor a safer treatment approach. Allergies determine which medications are safer, not to mention that they could be the main reason for your emergency room visit. With the list, the care providers will have an easier time narrowing down the best treatment method to restore your health.
Toxins ingested
If you suspect or know that the medical emergency is caused by ingested poison, you should bring it or at least a photo of the container. It would also be helpful if you could tell how much you swallowed and when. Such information can help healthcare providers quickly implement proper measures to mitigate the damage as they work to reverse the situation.
Severed parts
Accident emergencies can include a severed toe, finger, or limb. In such cases, you should do your best to stop the bleeding and preserve the part, such as wrapping it in a dump cloth, sealing it in a plastic bag, and putting ice over it. Bring the part to the emergency room where it can be better preserved and re-attached.
Emergencies are overwhelming. Still, amidst the chaos, it helps if you bring as many helpful items to the emergency room that can help the healthcare providers to understand the situation and your medical history. Contact Houston Medical ER today for all your emergency-related needs.