Wiki Do you charge critical care for suicidal patients in the ER

[jonileis]

We have Psych patients in the ER for days at a time waiting for a Psych bed to open up. The ER Physicians and staff are frequently assessing the patient and medicating them when necessary. Sometimes they have to be restrained for their safety and the safety of other patients, family, and staff. There are a lot of resources that go into these patients, we feed them 3 meals a day and snacks, monitor their visitors, provide a shower/bath for them, etc. Do other ERs charge critical care time for the time they have to de-escalate and medicate, monitor their vitals when unstable, address critical lab, while they are on suicide watch? One of my doctors asked the other day what they need to document for Critical Care.

 

[CodingKing]

No it does not qualify as critical care, its reserved for people that are critically ill. A critical illness or injury acutely impairs one or more vital organ systems such that there is a high probability of imminent or life threatening deterioration in the patient's condition. Think of a patient in organ failure