Know Before You Go (10.5.14) Since Tuesday I’ve spent more than 50 hours in the hospital with my mom. All of that time has given me ample opportunity to observe how things run. Mind you, this is hardly the first time I’ve spent in a hospital with her, but it’s the first time in this particular hospital. While I do not normally name specifics in my blog, I am making an exception this time. Given a choice, Evergreen in Kirkland is the place to go to the emergency room. I’ve been there twice this week with little to no wait, unlike Bellevue and Seattle hospitals where one could wait many hours before being seen by a doctor. I found the nurses and techs to be thoughtful and compassionate. One thing to know before you go is it’s really cold in the rooms, try to remember to bring a warm jacket, you’ll likely be there awhile. Secondly, the chairs are cold plastic. Finally, when you’re told they are being admitted to the hospital expect several hours before they’re actually moved upstairs. None of us (my brother, sister and I) wanted to leave until she got upstairs and we all froze and starved. Once upstairs, 8th floor, silver building, the rooms are very nice and comfortable, except the guest chairs, which are metal folding chairs with a little padding. They seemed short staffed. Your requests that were not emergencies took quite a while to be attended. When it’s your mother, who has dementia, is in pain and nauseous, your patience tends to wear thin. Though, when there is an emergency, thankfully, the staff is Johnny on the Spot. Off to the blue wing, 5th floor we go. In this section of the hospital, there is one nurse and tech team to every 4 rooms, so the care is excellent. The nurses and techs are exceptionally compassionate and truly seem to care about their patients comfort and have some authority to make certain medical decisions (pain & nausea meds, for example). Thankfully each room has a couch/bed and the folding guest chairs are a comfortable mesh. I would say my most important observation throughout this experience so far (no it’s not how comfortable the guest chairs are in each section) is that the patient needs an advocate who knows their medical history. I have repeated it to hospital staff at least 20 times. They do not go out of their way to obtain the information from their primary doctor or pharmacy. Do not expect anyone entering the room to have bothered to look at the patient’s chart. I stopped a woman from drawing blood with a needle after we’d had a pick (port) put in. I made the surgeon, nurses and techs speak with us outside the room after they came in and started explaining way too much and scared my mom. I had to tell every new person that she has dementia, stopping them from inundating her with questions (which frustrates her and makes her cry). I told them when she was in pain, needed to use the restroom, had a sore throat from the NG tube or felt nauseous. I made the transport stop and wait until we’d spoken with a doctor before they took her off for X-rays or surgery (yes, they showed up to take her to surgery before my brother or sister had the opportunity to speak with the surgeon, even though he agreed he would come back and speak with them once they arrived because we make these decisions as a team). All in all, she’s had decent care, but so much of that is because she’s had family and friends there to ensure she has the proper care. Yes, it’s exhausting and inconvenient, but you can never expect anything at a hospital or other care facility. You’re behind the wheel, you have to drive the outcome. My mother is on the mend physically and back on the 8th floor of the silver building. My sister reported tonight that the service is expectedly lower than on the 5th floor of the blue building. I will go to bed now knowing that I have to be even more alert tomorrow to drive the day and sit in the cold metal chairs with minimal padding… Cheers, She (40/52)
Posted on: Mon, 06 Oct 2014 05:49:55 +0000
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