Health care needs common sense

I can't remember how many trips I've made to a hospital emergency room during my life, but I will tell you this, my recent experiences sure don't compare to the old days when I was guaranteed of seeing a doctor within an hour from the time I arrived.

The burden in ERs is greatly attributed to the numbers of Medi-Cal insured patients. This insurance is no longer accepted by most physicians in private practice so patients on Medi-Cal are forced to use specific medical clinics and hospital ER rooms.

Sitting in ER waiting rooms is an array of medical and non-medical problems waiting for answers and treatment.

With promises of quality and speedy attention to patients, neither hospital in our area are efficient. If people needing attention would use a little common sense, they wouldn't be in the ER in the first place. You can't expect an emergency staff to address it all in a timely manner when people bring in ailments that could be addressed at home or a medial clinic earlier in the day.

ER's are meant to serve EMERGENCIES! I have spared many an ER wait by simply going to the doctor's office during the day or on a Saturday, which my medical provider offers its patients.

The last time I was at the ER I saw people with children, who sure didn't appear to need emergency attention. These folks were laughing, joking and had the entire family in the ER unit like it was a party.

Excuse me, but emergency rooms are for serious emergencies. My observations say the medical staff in the ER goes to great lengths to serve everyone in a fair manner most of the time. As it should be, the most urgent and life threatening cases are seen first. A closer look at the priority at hand might be in order. I've watched as more serious cases are neglected, placed behind a simple symptomatic case more appropriately screened in triage.

I have to praise my private medical provider for attending to my recent family medical needs. He saw the serious nature of the situation and acted appropriately, not taking any chances with the case. On doctor's orders, our family sickie ended up in the emergency room.

Today, common sense on the part of the patient or the person or persons representing the patient needs to be in the forefront. I've always been under the impression that everyone should have a thermometer in their home, and, a well supplied medicine cabinet.

A high fever obviously indicates a problem. There are over the counter medicines that can help reduce fevers. Common sense can dictate whether an abrasion or cut needs a Band-Aid or stitches or something else. I'm not an expert in the medical field, but wasting the time of those who are isn't fair when it comes to non-emergency visits.

In fact, a lot of time taken up in ER's is devoted to patients on follow-up visits of a less serious nature that should be done in a doctor's office or clinic.

I have had some bad cuts, bruises, scrapes and sprains that may have caused me some pain and discomfort. But to run to the ER for every simple medical issue is a waste of the ER room staff's time that could be better spent on more serious cases.

If you are in moderate misery of a medical nature, you might just try taking an aspirin, icing that minor sprain and get off your feet for a while. I've done it and sometimes it works miracles.

There are those who milk the system just for the attention. We really need to be cultivating a society that is responsible about its sincere needs. I guess it goes back to that one apple spoiling it for the rest.

Until society stops babysitting the spoiled and irresponsible, I guess we can continue to expect long waits in the ER. As far as I'm concerned, social medicine is not the answer.