I need help for a scene I'm writing
Aug. 29th, 2010 10:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
valarltdHere's the set-up:
Our Hero was badly beaten by five young men at approximately 4 PM. He was left in a public place, an alley. Someone found him about six-ish and took him to the ER. He had his ID, and his contact information in his wallet. His phone was smashed in the attack. He arrived unconscious, but regained consciousness about nine o'clock.
How and when would the ER let his listed next-of-kin and responsible party know he's there?
When he arrives? When he awakes?
Would they call? Would they send the cops?
I have cops showing up on the NoK's doorstep right now, is that right? or would they only do that if he died? NoK called the cops, after a 45 minute grocery run went to four hours.
Help!
Our Hero was badly beaten by five young men at approximately 4 PM. He was left in a public place, an alley. Someone found him about six-ish and took him to the ER. He had his ID, and his contact information in his wallet. His phone was smashed in the attack. He arrived unconscious, but regained consciousness about nine o'clock.
How and when would the ER let his listed next-of-kin and responsible party know he's there?
When he arrives? When he awakes?
Would they call? Would they send the cops?
I have cops showing up on the NoK's doorstep right now, is that right? or would they only do that if he died? NoK called the cops, after a 45 minute grocery run went to four hours.
Help!
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no subject
Date: 2010-08-30 06:30 am (UTC)If campus cops brought him in, and he lived "on campus" they'd see about checking with school admin or at his house for NoK info and any pertinent medical info/allergies after getting him to ER.
If normal cops brought him in, a car would most likely notify school admin and check at his home (from the DL info) to notify NoK/friends/roommates had family contact/medical info for him.
If a Samaritan found him, then ER would contact local PD to check out his address for contact/NoK/medical info. If cops weren't involved from the start, and it's a busy nite like on halloween, then that contact might take an hour after he got to the ER or it could take 6 or so. And if ya really want to poke at the establishment/bureaucracy and the oh too realistic "oops" that happens in reality, when the cops show up after 6 or 7 hours to check if he lives with friends/roommates/NoK, they run into the cops who are leaving after getting follow up reports on his "dissappearance". Or more sadly, have the 2 different cops run into each other the next day, or the day after when they finally get around to following up on the different cases.
No, I'm not the least bit cynical in thinking how screwy the best intentioned bureaucracies can be.