big-chicken

My sister suffered from Multiple Sclerosis and was a resident in a LTC facility for 20 years before her death in 2000. She too had very poor oral care. I don't think the care providers brushed her teeth, ever. Near the end, she had problems swallowing which got progressively worse until she could no longer swallow even water. She became very dehydrated after this point and eventually she failed to thrive. Cleaning her teeth was not possible or safe at this point, but it certainly was when her health was better. Oral care was one of those things that got low/no priorty and it simply wasn't done. My parents used to brush her teeth when they visited but as was stated in a previous note, it really required a dental hygeinist to remove plaque once it adheres to teeth. This is one of those sad realities of being in LTC. It definately needs to change. big-chicken

Like a referee in a soccer game. Yellow card = warning. Red card = your outta there! big-chicken

I had an injection of Lovenox 4 weeks ago while hospitalized. They definately do sting. I was not a happy camper, especially since the nurse didn't explain what she was injecting, why she was injecting it, or ask for my consent. big-chicken

I was recently an overnight patient in a hospital. I was eating at a restaurant with my wife and had a sharp pain in my stomach. I went to the Mens room and fainted, hitting my head,neck, and shoulder on a hard surface. I was brought to the hospital in an ambulance. After being checked out in the ER (EKG, cardiac enzymes, CAT scan of head, and chest xray), I was admitted to a cardiac telemetry ward for monitoring. I spent a sleepless night in the cardiac telemetry ward while they monitored my heart, drew additional labs, and ran fluids into my IV. I had a lot of pain in my head, neck and shoulders but was only given 600 Moltron which was totally inaffective. In the morning, I had 3 differant doctors come and check on me. I was given nothing more for pain even though I requested something to make me more comfortable. The last doctor I spoke to said he wanted to keep me for another 24 hours to continue monitoring me. At that point all EKGs and labs were normal. I was eating, and drinking sufficiently. I felt that the the continued monitoring was a waste of time and I was frustrated that I was recieving nothing for pain, so I told the doctor I would not agree to staying any longer and requested that I be released. My DC instructions said to call my PCP and get checked out further. I did so and was sent for a 5 -hr glucose tolerance test (miserable) and a cardiac stress test (passed with flying colors). This incident occured 3 weeks ago and we never determined why I fainted and fell as I did. I have a strong suspicion that I may have a problem with gall-stones and may have passed a stone that night, causing me the pain which doubled me over and made me pass out. I don't understand why the doctors didn't suspect this and investigate further. They seemed to have tunnel-vision only caring about my cardiac function and nothing else, including my comfort level. I'm normally a very healthy person. This is the first time in 30 years I've seen the inside of a hospital. I'm 53 yo male. big-chicken

When you do your' first stick on a patient, do you inform the patient that this is your' first time? Is the patient given the option to have an experienced person care for them? Just curious. I recently had a glucous tolerance test and I swear I must have been the Ginny pig that day. big-chicken

Here in MA, you cannot be hired as a fire-fighter if you smoke. This is due to health/life insurance. If you are seen smoking "outside of work" you can be fired from the fire department. This relates to fire-fighters that aquire lung-cancer from work hazards like smoke, chemical fires, etc. When this became law, they provided a grand-father clause for the older fire-fighters so you have this double-standard. The old guys can smoke on their breaks, but the newer hires can be fired for smoking at home/off duty. I thought this type of nonsense only happened in MASS, but I guess the rest of the country is following MASS crazy precedent. big-chicken

Chances are they sheilded him from radiation with a lead vest, like they do in the dentist office when you get X-rays. I think having a sperm count is probably a good idea. It certainly can't hurt. big-chicken

If you can decline the shot, you can also decline to sign a form. Recieving or not recieving a flu shot is your' personal business, and the hospital is not entitled to access your' personal health info. Even if you choose to get a flu shot, I would refuse to disclose this info to the hospital. I would simply state "this is an issue between me and my PCP". If I choose to get a shot, I'll get it from my PCP and that info will remain private. Whether you believe in flu shots or not, these hospitals and other facilities need to learn that they cannot mandate compliance and cannot force you to disclose personal health info. Does anyone believe these initiatives will stop with flu shots? If they can get away with this, they can also force you to recieve any number of other vaccines. Encouraging compliance and offering free shots is fine. It should stop right there. As far as the hospitals that are threatening to withold sick pay, they needs to be challenged, if necessary in court. drive-south

As I stated I would ask the Dr to explain the sarcastic comment immedately, before they walk away. If I had to chase the doctor down the hall to get the answer then so be it. Failing that a trip to the admin area to address this with a patient advocate is not out of the question. If there is something in a patient's labs that counter-indicate them recieving pain meds, shouldn't the patient be told what/why? Until such time that paitients take doctors to task for this behavior, it will continue and chances are they will be sarcastic with staff and everyone else they encounter. In many cases staff may not want to address the problem as it can affect their employment. Patients can make complaints without worrying about repercussions. Altra, Are you saying that patients should tolerate this from care givers? Patients would be doing the nursing staff a favor by addressing this issue. I expect in most cases the doctor would provide an explanation, and in many cases they would apologize. If the doctor won't explain their comment should the patient just shrug it off ? drive-south

I would expect the patient advocate to address the unprofessional attitude of the physician and would also expect the PA to provide satisfactory answers to any and all questions I asked. My understanding is that a hospital cannot perform a drug screening on anyone without the persons permission, unless there is a court order. They can run labs on blood/urine but cannot screen for drugs without permission. Also, pot smokers are not known to go to hospitals and seek narcs. Marijuana is not a narcotic. Perhaps they found something else in the labs. In any event, you have a right to see your file and access ALL info pertaining to your' health. I would have addressed this with Doctor attitude immediately after the comment. big-chicken

I would have demanded an explanation from the doctor immediately. If I wasn't happy with the reponse, I'd be talking to a patient advocate or administrator. There's no excuse for treating patients this way, even if they are junkys. big-chicken.

A MA hospital is sending letters to all employees regarding an emergency preparedness grant that the Hospital recieved from the Dept of Homeland Security. In order to be prepared for an outbreak of contagious disease, they are requiring all emplyees to complete a questionaire. They are required to list the names of all persons living in their house-holds and any persons they have close contact with. In the event that an infectious disease is brought into the hospital, the employees and their families would be required to be screened and placed on antibiotics. I understand the hospital's need to be prepared for this sort of thing, however I do see some problems that could result from having to provide all this info to the hospital. Has anyone experienced this? big-chicken

MSNBC recently ran a story about a woman who discovered her SS# was being used by an illegal alien in CA. He used the SS# to secure employment, but did not mess with her credit. She went through hell and high water to try and get this resolved. The Feds had no interest in the case because "no crime had been committed???" She continued to push INS/IRS/FBI, etc eventually the guy was arrested and is facing deportation. Some people are villainizing the woman who's number was stolen because the "poor illegal immegrant" is facing deportation. As if it is her fault the guy illegally used her SS#. We just got done discussing a case where the INS is drugging people into submission while they are being escorted back to their home country. This case is completely opposite where illegals are sucking up millions in hospital care and the hospital has no recourse. Perhaps the hospital should just shut down and close it's doors. 3 Million spent on 2 illegal aliens and the hospital had to spend $30k to transport one back to their native country. Now being sued by the family. All because the fed gov refuses to act and enforce US laws. big-chicken

Unfortunately the constitution would have to be amended. Don't count on it happening in our lifetime. I say the parents go home. If they want their kids, they have to take them with them. Bye Bye!! The Federal Gov just doesn't care and doesn't get it. There are too many groups lobbying for illegals. Too much money being put into pol hands. big-chicken

I plan to ask my doctor for the shingles immunization at my next physical. My dad had a very painful bout of shingles several years ago and I would very much like to avoid that all together thank you. big-chicken