Re: to give pain meds or not to give meds?
one of my biggest pet peeves is when nurses write "denies pain".
my experience with dementia pts, is often, their agitation is symptomatic of pain or some other etiology.
also i find that most cannot answer accurately, when asked if they're in pain, are hungry/thirsty....it truly takes keen assessment.
most elderly have a dx of djd/oa/ra.
the dx alone should be indicative of the potential and reality of their pain.
when i routinely give tylenol and see a mental status change from agitated to pleasant and even happy, that is confirmation enough for me.
when i can safely identify this pattern, then i get a scheduled order from the docs.
of course dementia pts have pain!
just as 95% of our elderly do.
thankfully, tylenol usually does the trick.
but it is our duty, to keep our pts free of pain, whether it is physical, emotional/mental or spiritual.
why is that such a hard concept for some to understand?
leslie
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First of all, sorry for the caps, just easier for me to type without typos. We have to sign out tylenol just as if it was a darvocet, tyl #3, etc... because of our pharmacist. She thought it was a good idea to track use and yes they are locked up with narcs. Her quote, tylenol is for pts, not employees! She had aproblem in the past with pilfering of stock tylenol.Thanks to all of you for your validation...made me feel better. I was beginning to doubt myself,but as you have stated, dementia pts do have pain and a quiet restful night for all of us is the results of giving them their prns. Thanks again!
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