A&E admission questions

[catsonahottinroof]

Something that's always bothered me, is why on admission to A&E they ask your job title. I'm a bit suspicious as the males I know in 'worthy' jobs (teacher, firefighter, etc) always get treated straight away when women with very similar complaints get fobbed off with no treatment (the women I'm speaking of having either part time or office jobs). Is there a value judgement being put on people on admission as to whether they worth treating? My opinion is everyone should be treated equally whatever their job title or not. If this is not the case, why is this question asked?

I have never been asked that.

I have been asked. The relevance was that, the advice I was given on what to do in the next few days was dependant on what my job was.

Not been asked for me or my parents

Was asked for retire mil - it gave the nurses a way to connect with her. She had Alzheimer’s and had been a district nurse. Made small talk and connection between medical staff and patient much easier. Her long term memory was great and playing on that made her much more relaxed and compliant with requests.

If you google the "12 ADLs" roper logan and tierney, work and play features, doctors and nurses supposed to assess all aspects that are relevant to the patients condition and the impact it may have on their lifestyle. Some jobs also may pose more risk or contribute to ill-health. Social situations are also relevant. A person whole is sole earner for a family my have more anxiety and stress about whats happening and that affecting their ability to support their family, over a lone individual who lives with family and can be supported for example. It all impacts the person so to care for them holistically, you need the whole picture

I thought OP was asking specifically about when you get into A&E, they won't have assessed anyone at that stage.

I've been asked what I do by a doctor, because they wanted to know if I was going to struggle with it. Never on admission.

Did you come in with something that might have been caused at work?

Oh please. You honestly think people get seen sooner because of their job. That's ridiculous.

You said the people you know had 'similar' complaints. So for one thing not identical & secondly presumably you're not privy to their medical histories.

Their profession may be relevant when it comes to which treatment they get, or recuperation time & time off work. My brother is a firefighter so something that may appear minor or have little or no time off needed for someone WFH or office based could result in him being off several weeks. But to suggest they get better or quicker service because of their profession is ridiculous & quite insulting to medical staff

I’m in the north and always get asked that question when I rock up at A&E . I always say I work at the airport which in fairness I do I just don’t say my job title.

Ex A&E receptionist here. It's on the list of questions we ask patients when booking them in, for the reasons already explained. Some of my colleagues don't bother asking at booking in but a nurse or doctor will ask later (if it's pertinent.)

You definitely wouldn't get treated any quicker or slower depending on your job, I promise.

I've been admitted via A&E as an emergency, once. No-one asked me what I did. There wasn't time

But I imagine accidents are often dictated by work environment and so the question is relevant. Plus after care. Someone who stands all day for a job is going to need different aftercare from someone who can sit down.

Thanks for replies - yes it's at booking in when they check your date of birth, address, etc. Maybe it varies across the country. I'm not saying you get treated faster in life or death situations because of your job, just that for eg a sprained ankle/possible fracture, would someone like a fireman or police officer get taken more seriously than a supermarket worker? I'm just not sure why it's information that needs to be on file, surely the doctor or nurse assessing you can ask.

Of course people aren't treated according to their jobs.

No it doesn't affect how quickly you get treated, but it can help build a picture which helps with diagnosis/causes/advice in some cases. People spend a lot of their time at work, and jobs can have different physical factors that can cause or exasperate ill health; but it's only part of the picture so isn't used to make assumptions.

It's probably collected for statistical reasons as well - I imagine the hospital provides an anonymised days set to central NHS with details of who attends A+E when - how many children, how many retired, how many unemployed etc. 'Employed' may well be broken down into further sets looking at types of employment. This information will be used when planning services.

It can be useful information clinically but wouldn't be used to triage who is seen when.

would someone like a fireman or police officer get taken more seriously than a supermarket worker

Ofcourse they wouldn't. They might however get different advice on aftercare and when they can return to work. Noone gets seen faster or treated more seriously because of their occupation.

Well I can tell you as an NHS nurse my colleague fell and fractured her hip on shift the other day, she waited in the queue like everyone else. No special treatment. We do ask about occupation as it is relevant to many aspects of your life.

Because someone presenting with a sore eye who says they are a carpenter will get a different initial assessment to someone who is a data analyst!

obviously

Because someone who works in a local school which is currently experiencing a TB outbreak will wait in a different area to someone who works from home.

Because someone who is a driver will need different legal records than someone who is a cashier

Because what you do all day is information that can help work out what has gone wrong for you, and also how you will need to be cared for

My job is NHS although my service doesn't ask I've noticed there is a box for job on the main demographics page (also includes things like ethnicity, marital status, if you are a carer, religion, etc.). Weirdly an unusually high number of people who I know for a fact aren't surgeons have their job listed as surgeon.

Definitely can help with a diagnosis and method of treatment depending on your job. My oh is a scaffolder, he’s still fairly young but his wrists and knees are constantly hurting due to the repetitive actions in work. He’s been in hospital a couple of times due to fairly severe injuries, which while wasn’t directly caused by his job, it certainly contributed to the wear and tear already in those areas.

I've been asked but not by reception - only by medical staff so they can advise if I can go back to work or any precautions etc.

When I injured myself on duty as a police officer, the nurse thought it hilarious that her treatment reduced me to tears 🙄 but that was professional banter. And it hurt like fuck. I went back to work for the day until a colleague basically told my Inspector to send me home with my broken hand and sheet white face....

@Nimbostratus100
Exactly this, healthcare professionals provide holistic care. Lots of health problems could be caused by environmental factors. Occupation helps paint a picture, can sometimes give important information to form a diagnosis. Not to judge or shame people and banish them to the back of the queue 😂

If your occupation is documented when you book in, it saves the doctors and nurses having to ask you. You are likely to see more than one clinician and if they all asked you it would get a bit tedious and repetitive. If it's on your record they don't need to ask.

It's about environmental exposure which helps diagnosed what the problem may be.... teachers....likely to be cardiac....aka high stress job.