•     Arrive with your insurance card, medical history, list of medications, allergies and names of doctors who’ve provided you care in the past. If possible, provide a list and timeline of your symptoms to help the staff understand what brought you to the point of needing emergency care. Your health history is the most significant tool the staff has to help make the most accurate diagnosis.
•     Bring a health partner with you. A health partner can help give the medical history if you’re too ill, take notes, ask questions and help you follow discharge instructions. They can also be your ride home.
•     Use any wait time to make phone calls to coordinate a ride home if you’ll need one, ask a friend to care for pets or pick up children from school or day care and let your doctor’s office know you’re in the emergency department.
•     It’s easy to let healthcare professionals drive the conversation, especially in such a tense, busy environment. But make sure you speak up and advocate for yourself—tell the doctor or nurse everything—even if it’s embarrassing—and make sure to ask all your questions before they discharge you.
•     Before you use the restroom, ask the staff if they think they’ll need a urine sample. This simple step could save you time and several bottles of water later in your visit.
•     When you’re discharged, ask for copies of any tests or results so you can share with your primary care provider.
The amount of time you spend waiting in the Emergency Department will vary based on what you’re there for, how many other patients are there and the severity of the cases. Those with risks to life or limb are attended to first. Rest assured the doctors, nurses and support staff are doing everything they can to move things along quickly.