so mad I am stuffing CHOCOLATES

[hensylee]

As many of you know my bro is in assisted living. One of his complaints is Parkinson's Disease. It took months to get him leveled out, off the walker, able to think more or less correctly. He's been pretty good for about 2 yrs. Last week a virulent very contagious virus showed up at the 'home'. Many residents caught it. Staff people were/are wearing face masks. Health dept has entered the picture to find what it is. No results yet except inspections shows they are clean as a whistle, so it's a virus. Bro came down w/it Wed aft. By Sunday staff decided he should go to ER. In mask, we went and he was admitted. When you go to hosp you take a list of your meds, right???? Right. We did, of course. I find out this morning the hospital doesn't have in stock his Mirapex which is Parkinson's medicine and keeps him stable. He was awake all night and rambling/ranting/paranoid this morning. I called the 'home' to report in, as usual, and they said hosp had called and asked this morning for Mirapex. I have discovered bro has been w/o it since Sunday morning when the 'home' staff gave him his morning dose. No wonder he 'lost it' at the hospital. I rushed over, got it, took it and told the nurse at hospital he needs it RIGHT NOW. That was at noon - he got it at 2 p.m. The hosp nurse said they called the 'home' and asked for it on Sunday when he came in and she acted uppity to me - well, as some of you know, I can be downright uppity, too. Nobody at the 'home' knew the hosp needed the med - til this morning. In fact the administrator went to the hospital yesterday and she would have taken bro's med if she had known the hosp needed it! I have written to the hospital owner w/my complaints. I asked him why, if the hospital doesn't stock a certain med, they can't just get a rx from dr, run up to WalMart or WinnDixie and get it filled!!! Sounds simple to me. They are there to serve, right?

Point here is all of us, especially you, need to keep track of what is happening to you or your loved one. I do try - I am like a hawk, everybody knows it and don't usually mess with me, but sometimes something like this slips through and I miss it. Keep track when your loved one is in the hospital. Go there at odd hours if you can to make sure all is being done. I usually am with bro, but he's in isolation and I can't go because of the contagiousness. We must be our own advocates in our health.

Thanks for listening.

I have eaten at least 10 pieces of chocolate - filled with coconut so maybe that's not so bad?

 

[Harrybaby666]

Oh My Gosh Hensy...I am sorry your going through this....

Oh My Gosh Hensy...I am sorry your going through this....

That is absolutely horrible!!!! My friend Bruce, who's mother is 87 and had a stroke in November is down at our "local Hospice and Rehabilitation Center" and let me tell you, the conditions are deplorable down there as well. Jeanette, my friends mother needs to be eating puree'ed food because her throat was paralyzed on the left side from the stroke, therefore, she chokes when the food is not cut up fine enough...Well, the hospice and rehabilitation know this, but they have been feeding her whole green beans (she choked on those), CORNBREAD, and all kinds of things that she cannot eat because of the choking factor...BUT THEY JUST KEEP DOING IT...I asked the nurse why if they knew she had a stroke and couldn't eat it, did they keep serving it too her, and she said in that same "uppity" tone, "Well, she is not on a restricted diet, so that is what she will eat!!! Then, when she needs to use the ladies room, they let her wait 2 to 3 hours before putting her in the bathroom to go. Thank God she comes home tomorrow. I just wanted to share because I have a great respect for both the beginning and ending of life and I love human beings both babies to the elderly... Please know that I am every bit as angry about this as you are and you and your brother are in my heart and prayers. AND FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE.....HAVE ALL THE CHOCOLATES YOU WANT AND DON'T FEEL GUILTY, IF WE WERE NOT MEANT TO HAVE IT, IT WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN PUT ON THIS EARTH... BIG HUGS FROM HARRYBABY

 

[Nancy]

Hensylee and Harry-

You both KNOW how I feel about things like that. Forget the uppity and get downright Irish flaming MAD. It's horrible how things like this can happen, but they do, and they happen more on the weekend, at least that's what we've found.

One of the worst times for something like this to happen is when one facility "hands off" to another. Then they both have a good excuse to fudge around with things. And it's hard to know who's telling the truth, if anyone is.

Joe is going to be transferred to a rehab facility tomorrow, and I'm going to have to watch everything closely, since, not only does he have his accident problem, but as ya'll know, he has many other problems. I'll be exceptionally surprised if the rehab facility gets it right.

It's going to be a major headache.

I feel very sorry for folks who have noone to look out for their welfare. They must get screwed over royally, and I'm sure some die from the terrible mistakes and terrible care.

In most cases it's not the doctors, it's the staff. And they keep the doctors ill-informed with CMA notes in the chart.

 

[Mary]

Ann,
You're absolutely correct. We have to remain vigilant and continually monitor the care our dear ones receive.
I'm eating chocolate to show my support!
Mary

 

[Harrybaby666]

Yep...It got my Irish Blood going...

Yep...It got my Irish Blood going...

Hi Nancy,
I couldn't agree more on the fact that this abuse happens mostly on the weekends or when the family is not around. I can count a few times that my friend Bruce, who had 3 heart attacks between December and January, told me that is mother called him and asked him to get dressed and drive the 1/2 hour drive to simply get her into the ladies room so she could use it because either the PCA's are so stretched to the limit while covering 10-12 patients or because the Verbally abusive nurse who basically don't care whether she goes to the bathroom or not...Poor Jeanette had to sit 2 hours before they came and put her in the bathroom, and she almost didn't make it....Needless to say, Harrybaby has a BIIIGGGG Mouth when it comes to injustices...THIS REALLY MAKES ME BOIL...

 

[Ross]

Now why doesn't this surprise me any? Maybe because it's an everyday occurance? I always hope it's going to get better, but all I see is a continuous slide downhill with medical care. The snobby attitude thing has got to go. I for one, am very tired of trying to be nice and getting snuffed by some pompous ass that is pretending to uphold some form of order when nothing could be more further from the truth.

If someone is not on the outside to help you while your on the inside, God help you!

 

[gadgetman]

We had some of the same experiences with my Mom's nursing home. She fell the first part of December, just when I was finding out the seriousness of my heart problems. She broke her leg in four places just below the hip. The put a plate and screws in to repair it but because of her age (84) they wanted to wait a couple of weeks before she got up on it. They immediately started physical therapy in the hospital, moving her limbs every day. She just wasn't allowed to walk on the leg. When we got her back to the nursing home, they said "it's not on the chart" for her to receive physical therapy and until the doctor ordered it she would not receive it. It took us three more weeks of battles back and forth before she started receiving the therapy. Of course, by this time she had a bad bedsore on her back and both her heels were raw from laying flat on her back for so long. Now they are giving her what she needs and she should be up and walking soon. You have to stay on top of them at the nursing home and make sure they receive the care the outfit is getting paid to provide. Her nursing home recently changed ownership and things seem to be improving.

Danny

 

[Granbonny]

I saw the same thing a few weeks ago..S/I/L admitted to hospital on a Thursday for tests. ect.....Left in hospital over the weekend..No food by mouth..for 2 days...Daughter could not find anyone that would give him food. Nurses were afraid to do anything.. Waiting for Monday, when the doctor's came back ... On Monday..the doctor's said..oh, you can go home now..Tests O.k.....Same hospital that kept telling me..your Grandson has a virus..Yikes, 4 days later..I called an ambulance...Ruputured appendix......Thank God..he came out O.K.....I hate hospitals....and ER doctors......... Bonnie

 

[Nancy]

This is a very important thread for all those potential patients and their loved ones.

Terrible medical care happens OFTEN, every day. You should know this and take the necessary precautions, if it means that someone has to be there early in the morning till late at night. Make sure there is another person who will be there and who understands about medical things if at all possible.

When you go in for surgery you will not be in a position to fend for yourself. Most of the nursing staff is terrific, but it only takes one idiot to make a mess out of things.

Do not be cowed by anyone's attitude. Just ask to see their ID and blatantly write down their names, and then follow through with a complaint and then follow up on the complaint.

Better yet, confront the person directly, and speak with the supervisor. This serves two purposes, it might get that person off the case, and hopefully cause a replacement by more competent help.

Ask your loved one if they have had their medications and ask what ones they had. Ask if they are being cared for toilet-wise. Ask if they are being washed up. Ask if their linens are being changed. Ask if the doctor has been in and ask what he said, Ask how many times nurses have been in the room, and if they took vital signs. If they are in the hospital for a long time or in a nursing home, actually look at all of their skin for signs of bedsores or other skin breakdown. If they have bruising, check that out every day you are there.

When Joe is in the hospital, I give him a bed bath whenever I can and I check out all of these things.

Today I was able to observe that his bruise from the fall had gone from 18 inches long and 6 inches wide to 24 inches long and 8 inches wide, and now was swelling. I called in the nurse to take a look at it and she also noticed that the bruise felt hot. She's an excellent nurse, and I'm glad Joe has her.

But I'm not even going to discuss the food service. That is absolutely atrocious! Joe got the same terrible meal 6 times in a row.

So these are the kinds of subtle things that might make a difference.

Well, anyway, I'm just babbling on. Just BE CAREFUL with anyone who is hospitalized.

One other thing--you do know that many ERs are outsourced in many hospitals, and so is the food service.

 

[joy]

I agree completely. These doctors that supposedly know everything, don't know our bodies, or how we feel. I almost died in the ER because some pompus jerk told me that I had a cold and I was wasting his time. He sent me home with cold meds, and said"don't come back unless you have a real illness." I went home in tears, only to end up BACK there less than 12 hours later. That time they took chest x rays and admitted me, but when Kevin came to see me, the alarm kept going off, and he told me it wasn't the O2 moniter, it was my heart rate that was racing. When I called the nurse, she said, "oh, this machine always says that, your heart rate is fine. Yeah, right, boy was SHE sadly mistaken! Did you know albuterol makes your heart race and pound? I do now! They try to hide their mistakes, because they are supposed to know everything. I have since then taken my health care into my own hands. I tell the doctors what tests I want them to run, they don't mess with me because I can be a VERY big B@#ch!!!!! Sometimes you have to, though. Give em hell ann, your bro deserves to be treated with respect and care!

 

[EVELYN]

Hi Hens

Do hope everything is better for your brother now. You're right about having to be on top of them at all times. Keep on stuffin' girlfriend......chocolate is the cure all for many problems.

Ev