My Photo
Name:
Location: United Kingdom

Perhaps you'll learn more about me as you read my blog. For anyone who translates my blog using the translator facility, don't forget if you wish to read the comments in your own language to click on the title of the post down the left hand side otherwise they will remain in english. Also I assume that the translation is accurate but I don't know, so please allow for errors.

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Even Mum Had A Go At A Male Nurse...

Today...

I've said before you could not get a more easy patient to look after than Mum...I also am painfully cheerful and easy to get on with.

But that does not mean we are pushovers and expect to be walked upon. This Nurse had again had a go about Mum being in bed. She is not always in bed but again sitting in a chair for 14 hours a day is boring(and remember Mum has a crushed vertebrae)so eventually her back starts to hurt.

They keep saying behave on the ward as if you were at home...If she was home she could eat when she wishes, sit in a chair, lay on the bed, watch TV, listen to the radio...whatever.

After exercising for an hour and allowing for meal times and even if you allow her sleeping for 8 hours...what is there for her to do? How does this help her mental well being? Where's the care?

Once again the televisions on the ward are still not working, all we keep being told is that they will be fixed. If you ask the staff on the wards all you hear is, it's nothing to do with us, it's a private company...yes, but it is a service that is supposed to be available to patients who are recovering.

The staff should be complaining about the lack of service, the trust should be complaining, the Government should be complaining about the lack of service.

Is it any wonder she is bored? Who wouldn't be?

Some of what they say about Mum(and have probably written in her records)are lies.

The staff are seemingly all new and been brought onto this ward from others that have closed down. Sometimes there seems to be too many and yet still I have seen neglect. Tonight a patient asked me to get a Nurse(she really is poorly)I found one eventually, 20 minutes later that patient was still waiting and she was in danger of throwing up and felt really dizzy...

Another night I heard a patient fall and take a nasty tumble in the corridor. I know sometimes it is busy and Nurses are stressed and are Angels but not all of them.

Now will Mum get home? The hospital Dr says that she should(but he said that almost two weeks ago)

They are putting in a stair bannister in our home(on Friday)Tomorrow they putting in very basic home improvements but these may be enough to get Mum home.

All it entails is the raising of furniture ever so slightly(and a bath board)which I know Mum has no intention of using and is a waste of time but if it gets her home quicker we'll go along with it.

I understand you sit on it and dangle your legs in the water, which means you'll be cold.

I think she will(with my help stick to bed baths or sponging herself down)as she has in hospital and in time we'll look into having a shower installed or a bath she can sit in with perhaps a shower above. And after 4-5 weeks these items that raise furniture if Mum is happy can be sent back. The first few weeks she has to be careful of dislocating her hip.

With or without help of the authorities we will install a stair lift. And hopefully in the next week we will be having the staircase, hall and landing decorated as we'd rather do that before putting the lift in than painting around it. Waiting for a stair lift from the authorities could take 3 months+ and yet the people that will decide if Mum can come home have said apart from it giving her extra choice, if there was a fire Mum could get out, well, if a fire happens whilst we wait for the starlift to be installed what happens?

The annoying thing is that the person who can release Mum from hospital has said she is doing so well but if the work isn't completed by the weekend Mum may have to stay in as they dislike releasing patients over the weekend. We don't mind we'll arrange transport. We don't wish to be there any longer than we need to be.

We know someone will be coming out to do physio for 6 weeks with Mum but what I want to know is who is coming out to give Mum her injections and if she comes home at the weekend what happens if this has not been arranged with the district Nurse to call to our home to continue this treatment?

Mum is getting a bit cheesed off with how they try to make her take some tablets she doesn't need and how they stand over her until she takes them. Even I know some of them are un-necesary but because they are on the list of what she takes they insist but she can and has refused one occasionally. We have heard other patients refuse far more medication than Mum has. They don't even give Mum the blood pressure tablet that her GP believes in.

I really believe the boredom and some of the after care is actually having a negative effect and knocking Mum back emotionally...we just know that she will be much better when she gets home.

As for her walking, yes she'll use the sticks(eventually hopefully one)and contrary to what they say I am still going to get Mum a Zimmer Frame and she can work between both. The Zimmer frame will be especially good to use over night when it's a bit dark and possibly if you may be a bit confused(Half asleep)as the Zimmer will give more support than sticks would.

I just hope we do get Mum home by the end of this week!

1 Comments:

Blogger Span Ows said...

What you say about boredom and negative effect etc is very true. Unbelievable about the guy but maybe he had just come on duty or just happened to see your mum in bed each time he passed and just presumed she was there the whole time. I'll tell you something for free...I couldn't do that job but it doesn't mean they should be able to get away with anything or bad treatment of patients.

14 October 2009 at 21:45  

Post a Comment

<< Home