Albert, 44 years, was mowing the lawn on Sunday morning when a foreign body flicked up out of the mower and into his eye. His wife drove him to the hospital. On presentation at triage, his eye is tearing quite a bit, and he still has the sensation that 'something is there'. He says he has 'no pain' but the eye is 'uncomfortable'. A quick check of vision reveals that he has no problems with visual acuity.

Shane is a 30-year-old male who presents to the ED complaining of having a frontal headache. The patient states he has been thinking of harming himself and wants to 'get help'. If he can not sort out his problems, he says he will 'go and jump off a bridge'.

Violet is a 91-year-old female of non-English speaking background. She is brought to the ED in her son's car after seeing her local doctor. You are called to assist her to get out of the car. Her son tells you she is 'very sick'. You note that she is able to transfer to a wheelchair with minimal assistance. According to her son, Violet fell three days earlier and has bruised her right hip. She is able to walk, though the hip is very painful. She is not distressed when seated. Her blood pressure is 150/90, her heart rate is 88 beats per minute, and her respiratory rate is 20 breaths per minute. You are unable to ascertain her exact level of pain, though she tells you she is 'alright'.

Glen, 52 years, presents to the ED with 'bleeding haemorrhoids'. He has had this problem 'on and off for the past few months', but now it is 'getting worse'. He says he has considerable pain when he opens his bowels and bleeds 'quite a bit' (about half a cup at a time for the last two days). He states that he needs to be seen by a doctor 'as soon as possible' as he considers his problem is 'an emergency'.

Rebecca is a 17-year-old female who is brought to the ED by her friends following an all-night party, where she took two tablets of ecstasy. She can not stop crying, and says she wants to die. She has had two previous minor overdoses in the past year.