Signs That You’re About To Lose Your Patience

I work in a small-town hospital. From 8:00 pm to 6:00 am, all incoming patients and visitors, emergency or not, have to go through the ER front desk where I work. The ER entrance is the only entrance for those hours and the main hospital is locked for safety. The doors to the main hospital are out of our direct sight down a hallway, and we use a remote camera and buzzer system to let people through the door once they’ve checked in.

There is a sign placed in the hallway on the way to the main hospital stating to stop and check in with the ER desk. Signs are placed at the main admission desk as well as in the center of that room stating the hours they are open and what hours people should register at the ER desk. Signs are on the main doors stating the hours they are locked and what visitors should do after hours (return to the ER desk). As well, all early patients are expressly told when they make their appointments to check in at the ER desk when they come in before a certain time.

This scenario happens daily.

A patient will come in for an early morning procedure. They will blatantly ignore me as I start to greet them. They will walk past the signs at the entrance. They will go all the way down the hall, ignore the signs at that entrance, and go to the main doors. They will yank and pull on the doors, attempting to force them open. They will stand there for several minutes staring at the door — but clearly not reading the signs — and then try to force the doors again. This might repeat several times. Finally, they will return to my desk.

Me: “Hello, how may I help you?”

Patient: “I’m here for [test] and everything is locked. I’m supposed to be here at [time].”

Me: “Yes. You must check in here first.”

Patient: “Well, how was I supposed to know that?”

I die a little more inside each time.