Many people today don’t have time to make doctor’s appointments for
themselves or their children. In addition, very few doctors make house
calls any more, and it seems like it can take weeks or even months to
get a real appointment. In situations where someone in your family is
sick, you don’t always have the money or time to go to the emergency
room, but you have questions, so what do you do? Fortunately, many
hospitals, clinics, and health care centers have developed something
called call center nursing. Basically, nurses work in a 24 hours a day,
7 days a week call center and are there to help answer patients’
questions. This call center nursing method is a great way to help
people determine whether or not they need simple over the counter
medication, or if more serious treatment is needed, without having to
wait in long lines at the hospital or beg to get a doctor’s
appointment.
The idea of call center nursing is
fairly simple. The nurses ask people who call in some basic information
such as the age, weight, and sex of the patient, as well as any
medications they are already taking. Then, there are some symptom based
questions that occur, such as how long has the symptom been happening,
and how severe is it. In addition, basic health and medical questions
can also be answered with call center nursing. Things like how to treat
poison ivy or deciphering lab tests results can all be done over the
phone with a qualified nurse. This is a convenient and safe way to get
your medical questions answered without having to wait to see a doctor.
The nurses can also help you assess whether or not a problem you or
your patient has needs to seek immediate attention or if it simply
needs a little bit of rest and attention at home for a few days.