Night Shift

As I drove home in the early hours of the morning, I was greeted by rays of sunshine peeking through the clouds and flittering on the surface of the harbor waters. Where many people cringe at the thought of staying awake all night to fulfill a work related responsibility, this was my reward for making it through another evening at the hospital.

Call of Duty

The night shift happens when most of the community should be sleeping, yet somehow the hospital emergency department seems to stay lively at all hours. It amazes me sometimes what people will present with at three in the morning; a nagging cough, an ankle injury from the day before or chronic pains that could have been treated during the day at a clinicians office. On the other hand there are those that tend to celebrate the evening hours with brawls, imbibing their favorite alcoholic beverages or driving who knows where at that sleepy hour. So without fail, the emergency room staff assemble to assuage their complaints and injuries. In all honesty, it is not always easy to remain stoic about their complaints as a good laugh helps us stay awake and it just seems uncanny that someone would rather be at the hospital than in their own bed sleeping. Nonetheless, there will be someone there to meet the responsibility of caring for the night owls of the world in that time of need.

Of course there are true emergencies that present to the ED on occasion. The hum-drum feeling can quickly become pell-mell as resources are combined to make a difference for the people that need them most. In a coordinated effort treatment is rendered to expedite the care of the individual in question while the ankle sprains and hang nails take a back seat to the action. The night shift seems to be a different breed of caffeine guzzlers and adrenaline junkies, but when the night has come to an end, everyone scatters to catch up on their sleep and enjoy the serenity of the quiet morning hours before the rest of the world makes their morning commute.

Question of the Week

A 17 year old female is brought to the emergency department by her sister because of pruritic symptoms around her fingers and toes that is worse at night. On exam there are visible excoriations from repetitive scratching. The patient has been living in a women's shelter for several months. She has no past medical history, is not on medication and has no known allergies. A biopsy is taken from the intertriginous space between her fingers. What is the name of the organism responsible for causing her problem?

A. Herpes simplex type I
B. Staphylococcus aureus
C. Sarcoptes scabiei
D. Candida albicans
E. Streptococcus

Answer & Explanation