My first American Nursing Home

[akroeze]

So we repatriated an American citizen from one of our hospitals to an American NH in souther Ohio the other day.

I have to say, this place had pretty much all the stereotypes of the American nursing home! We got there and there was NO staff to be found anywhere. When we finally found a Nurse, all she had to say to us (in the most disrespectful tone possible) was "I'm not expecting anyone new, check the other areas." My partner said "Can you get a hold of the other areas for us so we know where to go?"

Well, I tell you, the look on her face was like we had just told her we spent our spare time killing babies and feasting on their flesh! "You want me to do what?!" was her response. Fortunately, one of the food service ladies was there and offered to take us over.

We finally found where our pt was supposed to be and nothing was ready in the room. She was supposed to have a specialty bed, our hospital had sent a list of ALL her needs and spoken on the phone with the head of the place. She needed one of those fancy air mattresses due to decubitus ulcers.... well the bed they had was one of the oldest hospital beds I've seen.

Needless to say, I was not impressed with my first exposure to an American NH.

Caveat: I am fully aware that this is not representative of all NHs. I just found it sad that I found one with all these stereotypes on my first try!

[tskstorm]

yes it is ..

'nuff said

[unknown]

You would be hard pressed to find another setting. I myself have never set foot in a nursing home that impressed me to the least.

You see as a young child I lost my mother to domestic violence at the hands of a truly evil step father. Leaving my mother for dead with traumatic brain injuries, only thing is she didn't die. In a comatose state in the ICU he was allowed in to see her. Well if first you don't succeed try try again took on a whole new meaning that day. You see he took that opportunity to place a lethal dose of sleeping pills in her mouth thinking they would just dissolve... and away she would go. NOPE, found and foiled by a nurse on staff.......

What followed was 16 years of habitation in a Nursing home (state run and mandated) in the poor suburbs of Nashville, TN. Not only does the stench of urine and feces STILL stick in my nose...my skin crawls at the thought of entering the mere doors of a Nursing home.

As a child from the age of 4 on I was drug into that Nursing home multiple times a year to visit that wretched bent twisted deformed waist of a human being that I was told was my mother.

Not to make it out to seem worse than it truly was ( it truly was horrilbe in every word) My mother DIED as a direct result of NEGLECT at the hands of the nursing home staff. Her chart wasn't kept, wasn't updated. Day's went by and she had no bowl movement. Her caregivers didn't notice or they just didn't care. What resulted was her becoming impacted, then a perforated bowel......sepsis, vomiting, aspiration of that vomit wich lead to pneumonia......all which lead up to septic shock. Due to the fact she lived 16 years with sever brain trauma when her fever spiked at 113 what would leave us normal healthy adults in a veggitative state merely finished off what brain function she had left.

Thus leaving me (at age 20) and my brother (at age 25) to make the decision to leave her on life support or pull the plug.

Well we buried our mother in November of 2005, in a cemetery plot that was given to us by a family member on my fathers side of the family. My brother and I had no money at our young age and the responsibility to bury her was soley ours. To this day she ( her memory and remains) is miles away from her heritage and family all alone in a cold barren place surrounded by strangers.

So YEA HA! to the American Nursing homes. You'll be hard pressed to change my mind or make me think other wise about them. AND don't any one try to tell me this was a one place one time occurence. As a NREMTB I have made my share of runs in to nursing homes...

Yeah this is truly something that vastly needs improvement.

[fiznat]

Yeah man, pretty close.

Was it one of those beds with the cranks at the end to raise/lower/sit up/lay back etc? I freaking HATE those things.

[john_boston]

"I am fully aware that this is not representative of all NHs."

Not all but definitely most.

[kristo]

Wow. I thought our government-run nursing homes were bad. If a resident would not have a bowel movement for some days, it would be noticed, as this is one of the things checked upon shift change (every 8 hours). All bowel movements are registered, along with some rudimentary info like if there is diarrhea and an estimate on the amount (I = little, II = normal, III = a lot).

If, at the start of a morning shift, a resident has not had a bowel movement for an unusual period of time (for that resident), a time will be agreed, after which, without sufficient bowel movement, they get Microlax or Dulcolax. :roll:

In case you're not familiar with Microlax or Dulcolax, they're drugs that are given rectally to induce bowel movement, Microlax contains Natrii citras and Natrii laurylsulfoacetas, Dulcolax contains Bisacodylum INN. I don't know what they are, physiologically. I think they must act as a local stimulator for the enteric nervous system to induce mass peristalsis in the rectum, as that is usually the result...

[Acosell]

Hmm... I just gotta ask... Have you ever been to a Canadian nursing home because that sounds like a lot of them I've been into...

Fiznat, one of the local ERs still has those cranky beds.

[akroeze]

Hmm... I just gotta ask... Have you ever been to a Canadian nursing home because that sounds like a lot of them I've been into...

Fiznat, one of the local ERs still has those cranky beds.

See my experience has been different in Canadian NHs. Certainly they haven't been outright rude to us or a new admission pt.

[Richard B the EMT]

I'll play up the stereotype: are not ALL Canadians supposed to be extremely polite? (Asked by the stereotypically rude Noo Yawker)

[Acosell]

Well Richard, quite frankly I am shocked at the rudeness of your post. However, being the polite Canadian that I am, I forgive you and hereby invite you to my home for beaver tails and poutine.