Aitken, Peter (2011) Don't fade away. Emergency Medicine Australasia, 23 (3). pp. 379-380.

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Abstract

[Extract] Every ED has their regulars. Those patients who seem to spend more time in the ED than at home (often because they have no home). The patients whose charts become a virtual visitors book, a record of which staff have worked in the ED over the past 5–10 years. The patients whose presence sometimes 'blocks the box' or provokes knowing looks between senior medical and nursing staff as an unsuspecting junior heads off to see them. The regulars present with problems that are known, often well documented and based on a recurring theme. Often, the most effective management strategies are a cup of tea, sandwiches and a kind word rather than interventions based on the latest research or advances in health care. Every ED has their regulars. Those patients who seem to spend more time in the ED than at home (often because they have no home). The patients whose charts become a virtual visitors book, a record of which staff have worked in the ED over the past 5–10 years. The patients whose presence sometimes 'blocks the box' or provokes knowing looks between senior medical and nursing staff as an unsuspecting junior heads off to see them. The regulars present with problems that are known, often well documented and based on a recurring theme. Often, the most effective management strategies are a cup of tea, sandwiches and a kind word rather than interventions based on the latest research or advances in health care.

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