While we at Paramount hope that you stay healthy, it might be helpful to learn how to use the emergency room (ER) appropriately.

According to the National Center for Health Statistics, most people who go to an ER may not need emergency care. ER visits often cost more than the same health services provided in your doctor’s office. Not only will you probably pay more, but you’re also likely to spend more time in the ER than you would in your doctor’s office. People spend on average two hours in the ER for visits that aren’t emergencies.

Who’s Treated First in an ER?
Most ERs don’t work on a first-come, first-served basis. ERs use a triage system to rank patients according to how serious their medical problem is. People with the most serious conditions will be seen and treated first. Here is how ERs rank patients:

1. Emergent patients — patients who have life-threatening conditions
2. Urgent patients — patients who have serious medical problems but could wait an hour or two for care without dire consequences
3. Nonurgent patients — patients who have medical problems that could wait indefinitely for treatment or are more appropriately treated in the doctor’s office

When Should I Go to the ER?
Use your best judgment in deciding when to go to the ER for treatment. Learn the signs and symptoms of serious illness and trust your instincts. If you’re alarmed by unusually severe symptoms, seek immediate medical care by calling 911 or going to the nearest ER. But if you’re uncertain, call your doctor for advice, especially during regular office hours.

For urgent problems that don’t require emergency care, your doctor’s office will schedule an appointment for you as soon as possible, often within one or two days. But your doctor may tell you to go to the ER instead.

What Are Some Instances of When to Go?
The following lists are examples of when to go and when not to go to the ER.

When to Visit the ER:

• Referred by a doctor
• Severe or worsening allergic reaction to an insect bite or sting, medication, or other substance
• Behavioral health emergency: thoughts of harming yourself or others; behavior dangerous to yourself or others; new onset of hallucinations or delusions
• Bleeding: coughing up or vomiting blood; nose or wound bleeding that doesn’t stop after pressure is applied
• Signs of a heart attack, including extreme sweating; nausea; pressure, fullness, squeezing or pain in the center of the chest; tightness, burning or aching under the breastbone; chest pain with light-headedness
• Difficulty breathing
• Swallowing or inhaling an object
• Loss of consciousness
• Mental status change: new disorientation, dizziness or confusion
• Eye injury
• Drug overdose
• New and severe pain
• Seizures
• Signs of a stroke: sudden numbness or weakness on one side of the body; sudden loss of vision; loss of speech; trouble walking; sudden severe headache with no known cause; unexplained dizziness, unsteadiness or falls
• A severe injury, animal bite or burn
• Fever, agitation, altered behavior and vomiting in children younger than age 14 months

When Not to Visit the ER:

• Earache
• Minor cut or bite where bleeding is controlled (But check with your doctor during office hours — you may need a tet anus or rabies shot.)
• Sunburn or minor burn
• Minor rash
• Low fever
• Cold or cough
• Sore throat
• Seasonal allergies
• Flu symptoms
• Chronic back, neck or limb pain
• Most dental issues
• Sexually transmitted disease
• Urinary tract infection without fever or blood in the urine
• Need to get a refill for a medication
• Work, school or sports physicals
• Immunizations