Question

On a particularly busy night in the emergency department, a patient comes in with chest pain. The triage nurse, who's been on the job only two days, takes the patient's information, fills out the form, and puts the patient's chart on the rack so he'll be seen in the order in which he arrived. She mentions to a passing nurse, "There's a patient here who has pain — he's waiting to be seen." Thirty minutes later, still waiting to be seen, the patient collapses in the waiting room.

What likely contributed to this outcome?

(A) The lack of a shared plan for patients with chest pain resulted in a failure to act quickly.
(B) The high patient volume caused a long delay in caring for a patient with a critical condition.
(C) A new nurse was placed in triage, which was not safe.
(D) No clear standard of care exists for chest pain patients, so the nurse couldn't have known what to do.

Answer 1

The patient's collapse in the emergency room was likely due to a lack of proper emergency protocols for the treatment and assessment of chest pain, which is a potential indication of a life-threatening condition like AMI or angina pectoris.

Step-by-step explanation:

The likely cause for the emergency department patient's collapse after presenting with chest pain was (A) The lack of a shared plan for patients with chest pain that resulted in a failure to act quickly. This scenario describes a critical lapse in emergency protocols: treating chest pain as a potential emergency. Chest pain can indicate angina pectoris or a more serious condition like an acute myocardial infarction (AMI), both of which demand rapid assessment and intervention. The triage nurse's inexperience may have contributed, but all emergency department staff should be trained to recognize the urgency of chest pain and act accordingly, prioritizing these patients for immediate evaluation. It is key for health professionals to follow established guidelines for the presentation of chest pain, as time is critical in diagnosing and treating conditions such as an AMI or unstable angina. Mismanagement due to inexperience or lack of protocols can delay life-saving treatment, leading to severe or fatal outcomes.