It can be hard to say “No” in the emergency department. Nonetheless, many experts believe that talking with the doctor you are seeing during an emergency department visit may help you be actively involved in your care, and possibly avoid unnecessary and in some cases potentially harmful testing, procedures and treatments.

That’s why the Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians lists five common procedures and treatments you should know about:

CT scans of the head for minor injury;
Neck X-rays for minor neck injuries;
Back X-rays for lower back pain;
Antibiotics for skin abscesses;
Antibiotics for bronchitis and asthma

Be prepared for a trip to the Emergency Department (ED)

These tips can help you prepare:

Get a ride. In an emergency, call 911 for an ambulance. Don’t try to drive yourself;
Keep important information in your wallet;
Keep a list of your medical conditions and all the medicines you take;
Carry your provincial health insurance card;
Try to have the name of your family doctor with you or try to obtain a family doctor, before you have an emergency, if you do not have one;
Bring someone with you to the hospital. This person can help you explain your problem, and to understand and remember your follow-up care;
If you have a chronic or ongoing illness, ask your family physician to help you understand when you should be going to the emergency department for issues related to your illness;
If you have an ongoing medical or surgical problem that has been treated at one hospital, call that specialist first before coming to the ED. If needed, come to that hospital ED, not another hospital ED as they may not have the information or services you may need.
Understand that there are a number of factors that may result in a wait to be seen in the ED.

Conditions: Emergency conditions, head injury, neck injury, lower back pain, skin abscess, asthma, bronchitis

Diagnostic Tests: CT head scan, computer tomography, head imaging, neck x-ray, back x-ray

Treatments: Antibiotics, antimicrobials

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