September 23, 2015
On entering A&E people want more information on the following:In busy Emergency Departments, it has been the practice of some hospitals in the USA to run volunteer programs for medical students and other interested people to be inducted into and trained in order to become Emergency Room Ambassadors as a key ingredient of their Hospital Violence Programmes to reduce incident frequency and severity. Serving in a purely customer-service function, they carry out duties as follows within Hospital Violence Programmes:
- initial expected waiting times;
- changes to expected waiting times;
- reasons for changes (for example, intake of serious road traffic accidents);
- alternatives to A&E (where they can get treatment instead);
- their condition and priority in the queue. - NHS ESTATES
The Emergency Department is a busy place. Diagnoses, treatment plans and test results are often relayed to patients and families briefly and quickly, which may generate stress, anxiety, uncertainty and questions after the provider has left the room. In some cases, patients and families may wait a significant period of time before receiving updates, which can result in frustration and fear. The goal of the Emergency Department Ambassador Program is to provide patients and families with an additional resource person (ambassador) who will have the time to convey and repeat information from the medical care team, due to the fact that the ambassador will not have any clinical responsibilities in the ED. The ambassador will also serve as a conduit for any newly developed questions or concerns patients or families may have, and the student will then convey these issues to the medical care team in order to expedite appropriate action. The medical student will be able to provide a familiar face to soothe anxiety and frustration, and will facilitate a connection between the patient/family and the health care team.We recommend hospitals explore how ER Ambassadors might be trained and prepared to create a customer-service ‘buffer’ for the ER staff, especially during peak periods to enhance their Hospital Violence Programmes.University of Wisconsin Hospital- Ambassador Programme Job Description
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