The patient was 72 years old and had slipped on some wet stairs and sustained what is called a "straight-arm"/ fall-on-out-stretched-hand (FOOSH) injury.
The accident had happened TWO days prior to presentation in our Unit....the patient is 'scared of hospitals' and had naturally not taken any analgesia.
There was absolutely no range-of-movement through the elbow but...bizarrely....and fortunately...although the forearm looked like there was a compartment-syndrome happening,in fact there was no neuro-vascular damage!
Normally when I phone the Orthopods,they're quite blase...you can hear them thinking....'oh...he's the nurse at the minor injuries Unit...more rubbish'.Not yesterday!
does such a poorly patient then have to be shipped off to a real hospital? is there a doctor to prescribe morphine and reduce fracture or do you do all that yourselves as nurses? i found this site when looking for south african sausages.
ReplyDeleteThis patient in fact lived near the main hospital but chose to come to a minor injuries unit for treatment.
ReplyDeleteI gave oral morphine and then transferred the patient in an ambulance with entonox.the patient needed to go to theatre to have the elbow relocated
Was this patient South African? Probably not... because then you'd only have seen him/her an entire week later.
ReplyDeleteOuch... Not surprised it had to go to theatre.
That is....impressive. That poor guy/gal.
ReplyDeletehonestly i would not go on a blogging conference. it takes the whole air of mystery out of it. i mean: for all i know you are a sort of camilla parker bowles sort of woman who has never been to SA. and all this is just make believe. i think its better. bongi is now known...........i dont know i just think annoymaty is good
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