Having both suffered through some serious back pains and working emergency rooms on weekends I have to get into the breach for the nurses ... since -- in the end -- the patient was taken care of. I just remembered all the talks we had during our "hey there's only walking wounded left in the overcrowded waiting area [1] lets get squeeze in this first smoke and coffee for six hours"-breaks. Most of the patients we talked about seriously could have sued us for the comments we made about them. Now -- eight years later -- I know I should feel sorry about this really inapropriate behaviour but alas I can't. Most patients we mouthed of about were suffering from serious priority problems [2] and/or boredom [3] -- which might be really unenjoyable for the patient but not within our jobdescription. So it might also have happened to me -- had I been on the receiving end of your patient -- that he would have gotten a GOMER [4]-sticker and the connecting comments. And concerning the administration of pain-relief by pre-hospital staff (of which I approve from the patient's point of view) I've seen patients with "severe pain of unclear source" so drugged up in my ER they couldn't even remember where they hurt -- clogging up one of our scarce spaces for hours on end just to sober up so we could start tratment. [1] During "normal" days we would have to handle twice as many patients as our staff plan was made up for -- weekends saw twice as many patients coming in. [2] Legendary: The guy who walked in one sunday-afternoon to get his hand fixed. It had been broken three weeks earlier. [3] After getting drunk yesterday I have this really bad feeling in my chest. It must be an heart-attack. [4] Get Out of My Emergency Room