How long is too long....dead body

steelydanfan · Jun 21, 2006

Well, all the people reporting the story seem lucid, so here I say;

No, it should not have occurred.

In the days when we had semiprivate roms at our hospital, if someone coded, or someone died, you took the living person out of the room, gently explained why, and relocated them. Were there no other beds available?

Jack39 · Jun 21, 2006

The hospital had only the statement from PR; it included no details, except that it was not policy. BTW, the family actually took home video of the situation. I'm starting to think they had a lawsuit on their mind early in the game. I don't know.

nambour51 · Jun 21, 2006

Intriguing story. It would be interesting to hear the staffs account of the incident. Wonder why the family had a video camera with them!

banditrn · Jun 21, 2006

Sounds like someone's just looking for something to sue about!!

I don't know why they would have to have a body there for 6 hours - or why they couldn't have moved the body somewhere else, but we're only hearing the 'sensationalized' version.

Antikigirl, ASN, RN · Jun 21, 2006

First off when I read this...

""The death of another so close, reminding you of your own mortality, reminding of what could be there waiting for you, to me it was mental torture," Don said."

Okay...95 year old man in the hospital and you think he isn't thinking of his own mortality and potential passing? Please!!! Mental torture...come on, that is a bit harsh! Uncomfortable or unsettling yes..mental torture? Can we say law suit seeker??? I mean, yes...I don't think I would like it, or my family would like it...but I think I would be proactive and speaking to administration sternly about getting a different room or getting the deceased out more than complaining about 'mental torture' and not helping my family out!!!!

Anyway...that was unfortunate, and that seemed like a long time to have someone in a room dead in a shared ward. If that was my patient (the dead one or the other), I would be working my tailfeathers off to accomidate the removal of the deceased to a more appropriate area. I mean...to me that is a patient advocate for dignity issue for either patient.

No offence intended, but it wasn't like the passed roomate was doing something to be offensive on purpose! Heck, I have family or pts up in arms over someone that snores or uses the bathroom too much and wanting another room!

jmgrn65, RN · Jun 21, 2006

Whether the family is sue happy or not, the question remains 'why did they not move the patient out of the room' I have many questions on this, did they know the patient was dying and if so why not move one of them out of the room, why didn't the patients wife and family be more active in demanding that one of them be moved, the squeaky wheel gets the most grease. I am disgusting with the idea that the nurses and staff allowed the patient to remain in the room with the deceased where is the compassion!!

ktwlpn, LPN · Jun 21, 2006

My thoughts---In a perfect world every hospital and nursing home would have all private rooms....I've been involved in numerous situations like this both in acute and long term care.It's hard to juggle the needs of the rest of the patients/residents with the needs of the dying/dead pt/res. and their loved ones.Things can get very ugly,very quickly.I find it hard to believe that there was not an exam room on that unit to take the dead pt.If barred from doing to for some reason (some legality?) then I'm quite sure the other pt could have been moved for a few hours.Why weren't his family more pro-active? Why did the wife just SIT THERE hour after hour?Where in the heck was the social worker? The nurse manager? Supervisor?... I've seen fistfights between family members-I've watched visitors refuse to leave the room and sit there listening to another resident die-and then their families complained "Why did Mom amd Dad have to sit there and listen to that? Why didn't you take them out of the room?" Um-Because they refused to go......I've had family members demand a private room "it's not fair to mom's roomates" Sorry-we don't have any private rooms.... The aforementioned fistfight was in the hospital-I had a 98 yr old gal die (took her 2 days-it was not un-expected) and the husband was there ALONE....Well-the children started coming out of the woodwork and they refused to allow us to move MOmma until they all got there......They neglected to tell me that some were coming from ACROSS THE STATE.The roomate was a 40 yr old fresh post/up TAH.....I had to call security to break it up between her husband and 2 of the other pts sons....I remember the young husband saying " There is a time and a place for a wake-and this is NOT it" I think he was right..I was a new young nurse-I think I could have prevented this but I was overwhelmed-and don't forget my other 6 pts-diabetics and fresh post ops with CBI-what a night that was...I try to give as much support as possible prior to the death and during...afterwards I feel my job is done for the loved ones.I need to focus on the rest of my living patients.If I've done my job well they should move forward easily-but there are always exceptions to that rule.We see it all,don't we?

nurseirma · Jan 31, 2008

It is sad that the family had to be in the same room as the deceased for such an extended period. I, personally would not have an issue with it but my mom, daughter, son or other family member probably would. Working in the "field" of nursing tends to acclimate nurses to death, however, we must remember those that we provide care to probably have death and dying issues. I personally would have taken my cause up with administration to get the problem solved.

MAISY, RN-ER, BSN, RN · Jan 31, 2008

If the patient in the picture was that of the complaintant it appears that he may be monitored.

It is possible that there were no other places to put the surviving patient. Perhaps he required monitoring in addition to the oxygen he is seen with in the picture.

We code patients in the ER with another patient in the room....moving the "other" is not the priority. After a code, if we have somewhere to put the other patient we will...if not, they stay.

If the coding patient expires....many things have to be done before that patient is moved. I would imagine that these same procedures must be followed everywhere. Paperwork must be completed, phone calls are made, the body is prepared for whatever dispo, sharing network must be called along with medical examiner. Then transport must be called for the special cart and cover. All of this can take several hours. So I am not surprised at the time period.

Death is not pleasant for hospital patients, but it is a side effect to being in the hospital in the same vein as: smelly colostomy patients, smelly wound patients, smelly "whatever" patients, moaning, scary looking, you name it patients that wreck peoples meals, visiting times and whatever else they may complain about. Death is just one possible outcome from being a patient. People need to understand this.

Oh, and I wonder....if that picture is of the complaining patient...he appears bedridden....how would he know someone expired unless told by those same well meaning family members. Maybe they should've been removed.

Sorry if so cranky, had a BAD FAMILY week...sick of whining and complaints from the patient's visitors(who are not sick) and having the sick patients calming them down.

Maisy

Jo Dirt · Jan 31, 2008

When we had people die at the nursing home, they were in semi private rooms and no one went anywhere. We drew the curtains and never had any complaints from the other party. Sometimes it would be an hour or more before the funeral home came.

allnurses Guide · Jan 31, 2008

Wow.... well, in a perfect world no, this wouldn't have happened.

But, in my hospital for example... which stays pretty busy and there are times when there are **NO** beds available anywhere in the hospital... and really, not any exam rooms or anything like that, where a body could feasibly be stored...

I *GUESS* the only place that a body could go would be the morgue! I guess I would have to wonder why this body couldn't go to the morgue?