Elderly patient left on bedpan for days

This is horrendous. I pray that someone has learned something from this. I've, more than once, seen what a bedpan can do to the frail elderly in a matter of minutes. I can't imagine what this poor man went through for 5 days!

This happened at a hospital??? 2-3 shifts daily + MD and med student rounds and no one assessed this man enough that they didn't have to remove his sheets, or change his position to listen to lung sounds? He was never taken off the floor for any testing? It seems impossible that it would take 5 days to discover that. I am curious as to what was being documented in the charts by all the healthcare providers involved in his care. This is crazy!!! I am saddened and sickened by reading about this.

Beyond words. If he needed the bedpan, then he would not walk to the toilet, so was no one concerned as to his toileting habits? If he was immobile was no one turning him?

A nurse I worked with left a tourniquet on a patient once- it was found about 6 hours later. Very bad. But days??? Maybe I will cross that area off of my possible places-to-move-that-might-be-better-to-live list....

Still thinking about New Zealand though!

i am speechless...

I don't see any actual facts listed, beyond the fact that he does have bedsores. It seems to be all "allegations" and "supposedly". It doesn't say if he had bedsores previously to being put on the bedpan, either. (I might have missed it; I just skimmed through the news stories.) I don't have much faith in media reporting anymore.

New N NY . So this was a hospital setting? I am constantly aggravated at the attitudes hospitals have toward nursing homes. When here is your proof this happens in the ACUTE hospital setting. We recently had a pt whom has been in/out of the hospital and now has pressure areas whom the hospital is trying to blame on us. However, we have it on the admission assessment. But come on guys lets stop this and just do what is best for the pt. Non speaking english wow here's your sign you should have been looking for cues other than english grammar. Sorry for the pt and hope that there is something learned from it rather than pointing fingers. ;-)

This institution needs to take a...hiatus...from teaching nurses. How many people took care of that patient during that time? If not one of them turned this man, I guarantee you none of the other patients are being turned either.

I wouldn't believe this if you hadn't said you'd seen it. Seriously--this hospital needs to take a break from treating patients (much less teaching nurses!) and re-discover what caring for human beings entails.

I simply can't bring myself to believe everything I read. He could not have been left on a bedpan for 5 days. During all that time, during all those shifts, no one assessed this man? They didn't mention lack of sensation. He must have exhibited signs of pain. This is impossible.

Yeah how can that be? I can see it happening on one shift. Not 2 or 3 shifts every day for 5 days. EVERYONE who worked during those 5 days was horribly neglectful? I can see turning someone and not realizing they are on the bedpan if you just roll them with the draw sheet and stick a pillow in there... but how did they bathe him? What did they record for I&Os? BMs? And his vitals didn't change?

Nobody changed his bed linens for five days? Obviously, some aids and nurses lie about about giving care, but every nurse and every aid responsible for caring for him for five days?

At the facility I work at, nurses do treatments on patients, which includes turning and pasting and the nurse would certainly notice the bedpan under the man. Aids are supposed to toilet patients every two hours while they are awake and 99 percent of patients cannot stay in bed during meals, and the other percent can only if we are trying to heal a wound, and then staff would be meticulous about the patients hygiene and turning him.

That whole facility should be shut down, from the DON down, every employee needs to be investigated.

There should be criminal charges filed also, as they were paid for his care. For shame.