Agreed they should do their own assessment but there are things that I can pass along that don't need to be asked again. Do you know how frustrating it is to be asked the exact same set of questions over and over again? It can be misconstrued as demeaning to the patient, "why isn't anyone listening to me" comes to mind. What's the point of doing an assessment and passing finding along if those findings are going to be completely disregarded?
If you don't like it then that's your choice.
Can you give an example of what they don't need to be asked again?
Besides just the assessment questions there are other things the patient will be asked over and over. You might even have noticed there are sometimes signs posted in the patient rooms, that is if you go past the ED, which inform the patient for their safety they will be asked the same questions over and over. These include personal identifiers such as name and birthdate. Every health care worker from the phlebotomist, RN, LPN, Radiology Technician, ECG Technician, CT Scan Technician, Respiratory Technician, Admitting clerk and so on will ask that patient for their name and birthdate even if they just saw the patient a few hours before and know who they are. That is a policy in probably every hospital in the United States.
Also, as part of the patient education and re-education process, they may be asked to give the names of their medications, dosages and indications several times. Repetition is sometimes a good enforcer and patients won't be so ignorant of what their are taking and why. Again that is a good safety tool.
When that patient is transferred to another part of the hospital or even if another RN picks up that patient, the same questions and another thorough assessment will be done. At each shift change, the oncoming RN will again assess the patient. Your one time assessment is not the only one to be considered. Patients change. Even just while moving the patient from the ambulance to the ED, there can be a change in condition or mentation. If you are doing a CCT call, you should do your own assessment before assuming care for that patient and ask questions for clarification even if the RN just asked them.
If you work with patients and care about them, the choice is to do what you can to ensure safety rather than just copping an attitude and walking off pissed because you heard someone ask the same questions you just did. Again, it is not just about you. The whole patient care process and the plan of care must be considered with safety and the correct information provided for that care to continue beyond your ambulance.
