martybarker wrote:Linkat,
I believe that what happened to your grandmother is not a common practice but a very unfortunate turn of events that should not have happened. We treat our patients with quality care, from the drug addict to the convicted prisoner to the habitual smoker to the sweet 90 year old man with a GI bleed to the poor kid with the ruptured appendix.
BTW, from what I hear the VA is a whole different world. Don't know why.
In all honesty I believe that having family pictures around the bedside help the health care personell to remember to personalize care. Just a nice reminder to take just a moment to think of who this person is in their healthy state rather than a sickly patient needing their 4pm pill. As a part of my BS I was required to take Sociology of Aging. And as mentioned previously I've heard that medical students are focusing more on bedside manner than in years past
Thank you - and I agree. I have visited my dad when he had bypass surgery (now granted he was at the hospital my brother works at) and he received excellent care from all.
Not that you can compare situations - but when I was in maternity with both my girls - again everyone was so caring and nice. Except Nurse Crachit - She didn't like me much because I broke the rules - I had lots of visiters including young children and even a baby (my friend brought her whole clan) - but I felt great - not sick or anything. She would also scowl at me.
My mom has been a nurse for decades. Her take is something like, those who are most likely (statistically) to respond well to care are most likely to get the best care. She has spoken about that in terms of obesity -- she is overweight and, based on her own experiences as a nurse, is very concerned about what will happen once she gets to the point where she needs to be hospitalized (as a general concept, not that anything is currently an issue). She is generally healthy despite being overweight, and is "curable," but what she's seen is that the medical profession tends to see overweight people as less "worth it," more likely to have a bad medical outcome. I can see that this whole line of reasoning would apply to older people, too.
Linkat wrote:Miller wrote:Linkat wrote:Miller wrote:Linkat wrote:Phoenix32890 wrote:I can only guess that she had been given a P.R.N. (as needed)prescription for the medication. When there was no one around to make a noise, the nurses didn't bother. What a shame!
If the patient didn't say she was in pain, were the RNs supposed to read her mind?
Unless you were a complete idiot, it was quite apparent she was in pain. She was crying for God's sake.
No, it's never apparent that an elderly person is in pain. Some act as if they are in pain, because they're senile. Is your gandmother senile? There is a pain scale, and normally with someone not senile it is applicable.
You seem to think that the RNs are the problem, I on the other hand think you were the problem. You have no idea what medical practice in any hospital is really like, until you've worked in that specific environment. You moreover, know nothing about geriatrics.
See you do have some lingering anger at me. Jeepers keep it check. As I stated before my grandmother is far from senile and anyone that would speak with her would know this is true.
You keep saying I blame the nurses where if you read anything you would realize I stated they seem very helpful and nice, but overworked. And yes it is their fault. They are responsible for checking on patients every so many hours.
Again you assume I have no knowledge of geriatrics. I worked in a nursing home for four years. I have seen senile patients and I have seen 100 year old patients that were completely together. Also, my brother is a floor head of nurses with over 20 years experience. He felt there were issues too.
I believe you're angy with yourself and feel inferior to your Gandmother's health providers.
I think she feels the care her grandmother received was inferior.
Why on earth would she feel inferior to the healthcare workers?
Dorothy Parker wrote:I think she feels the care her grandmother received was inferior.
Thank you - I won't even warrant what was stated with a comment - other than to say Miller is angry at me from another thread.
Dorothy Parker wrote:Why on earth would she feel inferior to the healthcare workers?
I don't know either - especially because I actually was not mean to them and stated positive things about them. Very strange. I have family members and friends that work in the healthcare industry and have respect for them same as many other industries.
As I said I believe that Miller is angry at me.
Part of the problem is that many elderly people are confused about what is proper hospital behavior. An independently minded old woman might have a horror of "being a bother".
During my recent hospitalizations I've noticed laminated "Patients' Rights" announcements, including a right to pain medication--but not every hospital patient is print oriented.
So getting back to the original question...Do Hospitals treat the elderly any differently. No, IMO they do not. I do believe though that there is discrimination amonst individuals perhaps but the overall ethics of our hospital is to provide everyone with quality care.
When our MD's explain risks and benefits to patients I hear them say"If you were my mother I would have the same thing done." And I have known them long enough to know that they are sincere.
Dorothy Parker wrote:Why on earth would she feel inferior to the healthcare workers?
Have you asked her this question?
Linkat wrote:Dorothy Parker wrote:Linkat, I'm sorry to hear about your Nana's recent bad experience in hospital. I'm assuming you're in America and I don't know much about hospitals over there but I did do nursing for a while here in the Uk and I am still traumatised by some of the things I saw.
Yes I do think old people are treated differently and it genuinely scares me to think that one day I might be at the mercy of people like some of those I used to work with. I have a lot of respect for nurses as it's backbreaking work but the lack of compassion I came across in some staff was astonishing.
Thank you - yes I am in the US. And especially knowing many nurses, I realize how hard they work. I also have met many kind and caring nurses. Fortunately she is in rehab now and doing very nicely. We are hoping she will be over next week for Thanksgiving.
The poor woman would be better off, making her home with you instead of merely visiting for Thanksgiving.
Linkat wrote:Dorothy Parker wrote:I think she feels the care her grandmother received was inferior.
Thank you - I won't even warrant what was stated with a comment - other than to say Miller is angry at me from another thread.
Not a fact, nor is it a fact that your poor grandmother received inferior, care in a Boston area hospital.
Noddy24 wrote:
...I've noticed laminated "Patients' Rights" announcements, including a right to pain medication...
There isn't a "right" to any medication. There is a right to ask for a medication.
martybarker wrote:So getting back to the original question...Do Hospitals treat the elderly any differently. No, IMO they do not. I do believe though that there is discrimination amonst individuals perhaps but the overall ethics of our hospital is to provide everyone with quality care.
When our MD's explain risks and benefits to patients I hear them say"If you were my mother I would have the same thing done." And I have known them long enough to know that they are sincere.
i agree totally with you. Most MDs do not discriminate amongst patients. The few, who might, are usually reported to management.
Miller wrote:Linkat wrote:Dorothy Parker wrote:Linkat, I'm sorry to hear about your Nana's recent bad experience in hospital. I'm assuming you're in America and I don't know much about hospitals over there but I did do nursing for a while here in the Uk and I am still traumatised by some of the things I saw.
Yes I do think old people are treated differently and it genuinely scares me to think that one day I might be at the mercy of people like some of those I used to work with. I have a lot of respect for nurses as it's backbreaking work but the lack of compassion I came across in some staff was astonishing.
Thank you - yes I am in the US. And especially knowing many nurses, I realize how hard they work. I also have met many kind and caring nurses. Fortunately she is in rehab now and doing very nicely. We are hoping she will be over next week for Thanksgiving.
The poor woman would be better off, making her home with you instead of merely visiting for Thanksgiving.
I would love to have grandmom at my home - for a short while when I was a child she lived at my house when she had just moved back to our area after living years out of state. Unfortunately we have a 2 bedroom condo and there are 4 of us already. My mom wanted her to move in with them, but she would need the bathroom on the same floor as the bedroom and that isn't the case in her home.
Quote:I would love to have grandmom at my home
Then by all means, invite her to move in. It would be a delight for her as well as your family.
Miller wrote:Quote:I would love to have grandmom at my home
Then by all means, invite her to move in. It would be a delight for her as well as your family.
Duh, did you read - we have 4 people in the condo - 2 bedrooms - where would grandmom sleep?
Sorry I typically don't insult quite to that degree, but isn't obvious? There is no room. We also want to have my mom and dad move in as their home and yard is getting to be too much work, but obviously there is no space.
Loving to have something and reality do not always go hand and hand.
