thlnc

Hello everyone, I wanted input from some med-surg type nurses. If you have a patient that is at a VERY HIGH RISK for falls. He has fallen several times at home and he is disoriented in the hospital and has fell over the side rails of his bed once and was found wondering in the halls, found in bathroom with his foley pulled out etc... However, one of his grand daughters talks with the MD and says she doesn't want him restrained. She, however, is not his power of attorney. Even if she was, don't we have an obligation to keep this patient safe and demand that either a family member stay with him or light restraints will need to be used to keep him from serious injury. Anyone know if JCAHO or hospital policies cover family not wanting patient restrained. Thanks for any input. Theresa

Any pre-op nurses that can tell me what their policy or procedure is for ICU patients going to surgery. Are they brought to pre-op holding, or are they kept in ICU until ready for surgery. Had a patient on propofol drip put in the Pre-op holding area. Nurse gave report to an Anesthesia PA. Outcome not good. Thanks, Just wanted to know what is the normal procedure. Thlnc

Has anyone told your mother she has diverticulosis or diverticulitis? Diverticulosis is a pouch that can form in the intestine. It is a weakened area and may not cause symptoms unless it gets infected or swollen and then it is called diverliculitis. A diverticuli can rupture and that could be how air got into her abdominal cavity. If the stool gets into the peritoneal cavity it causes a massive infection and peritonitis which is an inflamation of the peritoneum. Alot can be done to keep from having flare ups from diverticulitis such as diet changes etc.... Good Luck, hope she's better soon.

Thanks for your input. To answer your questions, no there were was no pain during prep or before the colonoscopy. My thought was that there was a perforation during the procedure. I will ask about who read the CT reports. I did see the colonoscopy report and nothing out of the ordinary took place in his report or the nurses report. She left passing gas and with no complaints. It wasn't until about 24-48hrs later that the pain started. I know that perforation is a complication of the procedure even if it is done correctly. Thanks so much. Any other insight you can give would be appreciated. thlnc

My friend had a colonoscopy for rountine evaluation. 24-48hrs after the procedure, she started having increased pain. Diverticulosis was found on colonoscopy but no evidence of diverticulitis. A polyp was also removed with no bleeding. CT of abdomen showed nothing. She continued to get worse. Went back and they did another CT and found a 8cm abcess in the lower pelvis. And things got worse from there. Ended up with colostomy etc... Could all this be related to the diverticulosis or complications from the colonostomy? Anyone have any insight? Thanks

Just wanted some feedback on what is the standard of care for patients in the OR. Are belts commonly used to keep pt's from falling off table? If no belts, how is patient safety insured? Work at a small facility and had a patient fall off the table waking up. Not directly involved. Who has the ultimate responsibility for the patient while they are waking from anesthesia. We all know how small those tables are. Didn't fall during transfer, but apparently fell while waking up and no nurse was close enough to stop it. Thanks for any feedback thlnc:o