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Meet fellow Caregivers - Introduce yourself
Caregivers | Last Active: Nov 12, 2023 | Replies (707)Comment receiving replies
The food issues were the good! Now, the bad. A patient care employee took me aside in the first weeks of her admission and warned me that elderly patients like my mom tend to get ignored. On her good days she's as sweet and as polite as can be .... but on her 'uncertain' days she's like Granny Clampett on steroids and will (for example) exploit a nurse's physical weakness with impeccable timing, pinch, and take a swing at those attending her. She's been on her own for the latter part of her life and the fact that nurse's can be male is something she will never understand.
True to this patient care employee's word, I entered the room one day in the midst of an argument happening between my mom and a senior nurse of 35 years. I informed the nurse that she had recently been on the full spectrum of antibiotics and that she was still suffering hallucinations etc from their application and not to agitate her. She informed me that antibiotics do not cause any issues as such and that her issues were all due to education and upbringing. I reported her immediately and she was removed!
The bottom line is that 'some' health care employees should not be attending to geriatrics. There have been many other incidences, as such and in the line of 'delaying' care due to feistiness .... and I have dealt with them all to the best of my ability and for the ones I have been informed about or personally observed. I also went to management and had them assure me that a geriatric dementia patient, rock star, hockey player and infant all get the exact same attention and care!!! (nothing written on paper for that one, though)
Replies to "The food issues were the good! Now, the bad. A patient care employee took me aside..."
Yes, this is an area where I was totally naïve. I was under the belief the healthcare professionals entered the vocation more for an overwhelming desire to care for others .... and what a bonus to get paid for something you love to do. What I have found is that there are many who do exactly this. AND, there are many who work just for the paycheck and can't wait to punch the time clock.
To further convolute matters there are unions involved and there are restrictions to what lengths staff can do above and beyond their line of duty which often crosses moral and ethical lines when patients need immediate extracurricular care. Some of the more compassionate caregivers ignore these regulations and come running while others use it as a carte blanche to 'sit' and ignore as long as possible.
So ,,,,, it's these curious modalities and need for constant vigilance, due diligence, monitoring, policing that takes the extra time and energy. To be honest, I have no problem with 'just' the care giving itself,,,,,, if only it were that simple.
Doctors are not immune from this scene. It is unconscionable to think that they may simply forget to enter important diagnostic data into the computer database and for the more hands on caregivers to follow up on - but this has happened on several occasions already and also must be monitored regularly.
An example of this was that she was aspirating early on and could not take drink by straw .... which was her main form of intake. But then a Doctor and Speech Pathologist examined her and cleared for both straw and more solid foods. GREAT! I started immediately to up her intake based on this information and in which the Dr. informed me face to face. But wait, he did not enter in to the computer. Staff observed me feeding via straw and with solid foods. An argument ensued, security called, and I was expelled. It would be 10 days before the database would be officially corrected and (meanwhile) Mom had slipped to 82 pounds! Unconscionable, sad but a true happening.
@straight_shooter you are sure right about the complexity of the caregiving spectrum for our loved ones -- and for lots of other patients I expect! I believe (based on nothing other than my personal experiences with my wife's care journey) this complexity will continue as more and more specialization and sub-specialization continues in the medical field. I remember early on, when my wife was in her post-surgical rehab she had five different folks she worked with, one for each area of her need. I understand specialization, but also witnessed the confusion, loss of progress, etc. these almost hourly changes in personnel, locations, etc. brought her.
In some ways I wish Dr. Welby was still in the house 🙂
Courage, strength, and peace!
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It is indeed unfortunate @straight_shooter that we tend to see such a common theme of folks providing care for patients who aren't especially a particularly good fit for the job. That said, I do know that being a care provider is a very tough job! It was tough for me and I was doing it out of love. Shortly after my wife passed away a friend suggested I become a caregiver for others and it only took me a New York minute to say "I had no problem being a caregiver out of love, but there is no way I could do it for pay -- especially the low pay that is the norm for many CNAs and other attendant positions!
Hopefully this is an area, as the demand for these positions continues to increase folks will be offered a better wage and the industry will attract more good folks!
Courage, strength, and peace!