Hello all,its me again with another question about nursing home nursing.:)
I have been at odds with the day shift nurse for 3 days now,because she insists on making one of the residents walk,who fell on the 7th.Her hip/left thigh is very painful,getting steadily worse.She had portable xrays done which were negative on the 8th.
Last night,she could barely walk,and we ended up getting her a bedpan and using it.I was going to let her stay in bed this morning,just because it is so painful for her,and I tink she may have a fracture of her femur,or something that didnt show.Just so ya know,I did call her doc when she wasnt able to bear weight,he ordered another xray,of her femur.Shes already on Darvocet for the pain,and Tylenol.There is no deformity,shortening,rotation of the leg,good pulses....
.The lady is in her late 60's and has Parkinsons also.Her husband and she share a room,the husband has Alzheimers.She is worried about him,as she takes care of him,makes sure he gets dressed right,helps him do things around the room,etc...
Anyway,the day shift nurse came in and had a fit because she was still in bed.I explained top her that the lady was in tears and could hardly bear weight on the leg,so I had said she could stay in bed.She said she needs to walk on the leg.I said,she cant!She said,why.I said because it is too painful for her.She insisted the lady is just trying to get sympathy,and that theres nothing wrong with her leg,except a bruise.I said,well,when I got her up to the bathroom,she was in tears,and couldnt bear weight on it.She then asked me what we were doing for her leg.I said,Darvocet,and I called her Dr and got an order for another xray.She asked why.I said,because of the increased pain and decreased ability to bear weight,she may have a fracture that didnt show up the other day.She said,well,maybe,but she needs to walk.I still think theres notthing wrong.I said,well,if you want her out of bed,you go tell her,because Im not going to.She's in pain.
So,she did.My question is...am I being too nice thinking this lady deserves to lie in bed,not putting weight on her leg,yes,she does have some history of being anxious and a bit over dramatic at times.But,Im sorry,she was crying when she walked on her leg.I cannot bring myself to force someone to walk when theyre in taht much pain.
This has happened with other residents recently,theyve had a respiratory virus,and are weak,but the day shift insists on getting them up and going to the dining room for meals.They tell me these people need to not lie in bed and get down before their time.I feel it is cruel,and a bit lazy,perhaps,to make them go to meals,when they can just barely sit up.They dont do room trays often at this nursing home.Not sure why.
