Editorial Editor Claire Picton Managing editor Nick Lipley Tel: +44 (0)20 8872 3166 Email: [email protected] Managing director Rhonda Oliver Senior editor Gary Bell Assistant editor Sophie Blakemore Acting assistant editor Jennifer Sprinks Head of production Fiona Maclean Senior production editor Julie Hickey Production editor Duncan Tyler Art directors Ken McLoone, Paul Swainson Designer Sujata Aurora Picture editor Phil Brecht Deputy picture editor Helen Jones Digital director John Day IT and new media manager Alex Oldfield Web editor Amanda Carter
Why patients should be heeded
ADMINISTRATION Administration manager Helen Hyland Email: [email protected] Administration assistant Sandra Lynch BUSINESS UNIT Commercial director Tony O’Rourke PA to commercial director Kim Sanders Head of marketing Helen Sumner Deputy head of marketing Michelle Day Marketing executive Louise Gallagher Group educational projects manager Laura Downes Display advertisements Tel: +44 (0)20 8872 3123 Advertisement and sponsorship sales manager Neil Hobson Senior sponsorship and advertising specialist Julia Gomersall Advertisement and sponsorship executives Rachel Fisher, Kelly Smith Advertisement production executive Sally Gauntlett Classified advertisements Tel: +44 (0)20 8423 1333 Classified advertisement manager Andy McCallum Sales project specialist Freddie Collier Classified advertisement executives Mandy Croggon, Shona Gethin
Here is one related to an article on eye injuries on page 27 of this month’s journal. It concerns a relative of mine who sadly is no longer alive to tell the story for himself or explain how a different approach to his care could have improved his quality of life. As a young man in the late 1970s, my cousin loved motorcycling. One day, he was involved in a serious accident while out riding and, unconscious and with multiple injuries, he was taken into an emergency department.
EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Jim Bethel Senior lecturer and nurse practitioner in emergency care, University of Wolverhampton Hannah Bryant Resuscitation officer, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham Jennifer Critchley Urgent care centre emergency nurse practitioner, Benalla, and senior lecturer, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia Shelley Cummings Senior sister A&E, Royal Surrey County Hospital Rachel Lyons Assistant clinical professor of nursing, Rutgers University, Newark NJ Lorna McInulty Senior lecturer in emergency and unscheduled care, University of Central Lancashire Mike Paynter Consultant nurse, Somerset Partnership NHS Foundation Trust Andrew Rideout Advanced nurse practitioner, emergency department, Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary Linsey Sheerin Lead nurse in emergency care at Antrim Area Hospital, Northern Health and Social Care Trust
The healthcare professionals looking after him saved his life, but missed a fracture of the floor of his right orbit. Being unconscious, my cousin could not tell them what was wrong. Consequently, when he regained consciousness several weeks later, the movement of his eye on the affected side had become limited. He had to relearn many of the skills needed for ordinary activities, such as eating and walking.
EMERGENCY NURSE RCN Publishing Company The Heights, 59-65 Lowlands Road Harrow-on-the-Hill, Middlesex HA1 3AW Emergency Nurse is indexed, abstracted and/or published online in the following media: British Nursing Index, CINAHL, Medline and Ovid ABC APPLICATION APPROVED 8,160 (Jan-Dec 2013) SUBSCRIPTION DEPARTMENT Royal College of Nursing Journal subscription department, Copse Walk, Cardiff Gate Business Park, Cardiff CF23 8XG. Tel: +44 (0)345 772 6100 Personal rates for print edition: from £66 a year in the UK and Europe, and from £121 a year in the rest of the world. Institutional print edition rates: from £446 a year Email: [email protected] ©2014 RCN Publishing Company Ltd. All rights reserved. Not to be copied, transmitted or recorded in any way, in whole or part, without prior permission of the publishers. ISSN 1354-5752 (print). ISSN 2047-8984 (online) Printed by Stephens and George, Merthyr Tydfil Acceptance of an advertisement does not constitute a recommendation or an endorsement of a product or service, either by the RCN or RCN Publishing en.rcnpublishing.com
Professionals saved my cousin’s life, but missed a fracture in his orbit. Being unconscious, he could not tell them what was wrong
Editor
He was later told that the inferior rectus muscle of his right eye had been entrapped for so long that the herniated portion had become unviable. He was not offered corrective surgery, however, because in those days the likelihood of success was considered too small. For the rest of his life, and sadly it turned out to be a short one, my cousin experienced double vision, or diplopia. He also became aware that his right eye moved differently from his left eye, and for these reasons he wore an eye patch. It is important that healthcare professionals listen to such stories as soon as possible after patients are injured, as well as know about the problems that can arise from specific mechanisms of injury. The most serious problems must take priority, of course. But healthcare professionals should also be aware of problems that jeopardise patients’ lifestyles as well as those that threaten their lives. Claire Picton is consultant in emergency care nursing at the Hillingdon Hospital, Middlesex
Our mission Emergency Nurse encourages innovation and promotes professional excellence in all pre-hospital and emergency care settings. The journal is editorially independent and opinions expressed in it do not necessarily reflect the policies of the Royal College of Nursing or those of contributors’ employing organisations.
Follow us: @ENJournalRCN EMERGENCY NURSE
Claire Picton
Patient stories are a popular way of informing healthcare professionals about patients’ experiences and needs.
Read more at: nursingblog.rcnpublishing.co.uk
Visit us at: Emergency Nurse June 2014 | Volume 22 | Number 3
Downloaded from RCNi.com by ${individualUser.displayName} on Oct 13, 2015. For personal use only. No other uses without permission. Copyright © 2015 RCNi Ltd. All rights reserved.
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Why patients should be heeded
ADMINISTRATION Administration manager Helen Hyland Email: [email protected] Administration assistant Sandra Lynch BUSINESS UNIT Commercial director Tony O’Rourke PA to commercial director Kim Sanders Head of marketing Helen Sumner Deputy head of marketing Michelle Day Marketing executive Louise Gallagher Group educational projects manager Laura Downes Display advertisements Tel: +44 (0)20 8872 3123 Advertisement and sponsorship sales manager Neil Hobson Senior sponsorship and advertising specialist Julia Gomersall Advertisement and sponsorship executives Rachel Fisher, Kelly Smith Advertisement production executive Sally Gauntlett Classified advertisements Tel: +44 (0)20 8423 1333 Classified advertisement manager Andy McCallum Sales project specialist Freddie Collier Classified advertisement executives Mandy Croggon, Shona Gethin
Here is one related to an article on eye injuries on page 27 of this month’s journal. It concerns a relative of mine who sadly is no longer alive to tell the story for himself or explain how a different approach to his care could have improved his quality of life. As a young man in the late 1970s, my cousin loved motorcycling. One day, he was involved in a serious accident while out riding and, unconscious and with multiple injuries, he was taken into an emergency department.
EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Jim Bethel Senior lecturer and nurse practitioner in emergency care, University of Wolverhampton Hannah Bryant Resuscitation officer, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham Jennifer Critchley Urgent care centre emergency nurse practitioner, Benalla, and senior lecturer, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia Shelley Cummings Senior sister A&E, Royal Surrey County Hospital Rachel Lyons Assistant clinical professor of nursing, Rutgers University, Newark NJ Lorna McInulty Senior lecturer in emergency and unscheduled care, University of Central Lancashire Mike Paynter Consultant nurse, Somerset Partnership NHS Foundation Trust Andrew Rideout Advanced nurse practitioner, emergency department, Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary Linsey Sheerin Lead nurse in emergency care at Antrim Area Hospital, Northern Health and Social Care Trust
The healthcare professionals looking after him saved his life, but missed a fracture of the floor of his right orbit. Being unconscious, my cousin could not tell them what was wrong. Consequently, when he regained consciousness several weeks later, the movement of his eye on the affected side had become limited. He had to relearn many of the skills needed for ordinary activities, such as eating and walking.
EMERGENCY NURSE RCN Publishing Company The Heights, 59-65 Lowlands Road Harrow-on-the-Hill, Middlesex HA1 3AW Emergency Nurse is indexed, abstracted and/or published online in the following media: British Nursing Index, CINAHL, Medline and Ovid ABC APPLICATION APPROVED 8,160 (Jan-Dec 2013) SUBSCRIPTION DEPARTMENT Royal College of Nursing Journal subscription department, Copse Walk, Cardiff Gate Business Park, Cardiff CF23 8XG. Tel: +44 (0)345 772 6100 Personal rates for print edition: from £66 a year in the UK and Europe, and from £121 a year in the rest of the world. Institutional print edition rates: from £446 a year Email: [email protected] ©2014 RCN Publishing Company Ltd. All rights reserved. Not to be copied, transmitted or recorded in any way, in whole or part, without prior permission of the publishers. ISSN 1354-5752 (print). ISSN 2047-8984 (online) Printed by Stephens and George, Merthyr Tydfil Acceptance of an advertisement does not constitute a recommendation or an endorsement of a product or service, either by the RCN or RCN Publishing en.rcnpublishing.com
Professionals saved my cousin’s life, but missed a fracture in his orbit. Being unconscious, he could not tell them what was wrong
Editor
He was later told that the inferior rectus muscle of his right eye had been entrapped for so long that the herniated portion had become unviable. He was not offered corrective surgery, however, because in those days the likelihood of success was considered too small. For the rest of his life, and sadly it turned out to be a short one, my cousin experienced double vision, or diplopia. He also became aware that his right eye moved differently from his left eye, and for these reasons he wore an eye patch. It is important that healthcare professionals listen to such stories as soon as possible after patients are injured, as well as know about the problems that can arise from specific mechanisms of injury. The most serious problems must take priority, of course. But healthcare professionals should also be aware of problems that jeopardise patients’ lifestyles as well as those that threaten their lives. Claire Picton is consultant in emergency care nursing at the Hillingdon Hospital, Middlesex
Our mission Emergency Nurse encourages innovation and promotes professional excellence in all pre-hospital and emergency care settings. The journal is editorially independent and opinions expressed in it do not necessarily reflect the policies of the Royal College of Nursing or those of contributors’ employing organisations.
Follow us: @ENJournalRCN EMERGENCY NURSE
Claire Picton
Patient stories are a popular way of informing healthcare professionals about patients’ experiences and needs.
Read more at: nursingblog.rcnpublishing.co.uk
Visit us at: Emergency Nurse June 2014 | Volume 22 | Number 3
Downloaded from RCNi.com by ${individualUser.displayName} on Oct 13, 2015. For personal use only. No other uses without permission. Copyright © 2015 RCNi Ltd. All rights reserved.
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