Off duty patient contact

[Tyler_EMT]

We have a regular patient who we take from the nursing home to the hospital quite often for doctor consults and various other things. She is the sweetest old lady i have ever seen in my life. I've talked to her a lot on the ambulance during transports and i've found she has no family. So i often visit her at the nursing home while i'm off duty and sit and talk with her. It makes me feel good to know how much she trusts me. Has anyone else developed a friendship with a patient?

[DwayneEMTP]

I haven't, but I like your style.

Dwayne

[nypamedic43]

I have. He was a gentleman that I took every other day to his dialysis. We would talk and joke around on the way over and the way back. I would stop and visit him on my days off when I came to visit my Grandmother, while she was there at the nursing home for rehab. He had no family either but he felt compelled to tell me one day that he had decided to stop going to dialysis. No matter how much I tried to talk him out of it, he stood by his decision. He was tired, he said. That last week was pretty rough. I stopped in to see him the day he died. He was laying in bed, shaking, I just held his hand and told him that it was ok to go. Cried the whole time I was there. He passed about an hour later. I felt so bad that he was all alone through his life, that I couldnt let him be alone when he died. Broke my heart to sit there and watch him go.

Sometimes the best thing you can do for someone...is just...hold thier hand.

[scubanurse]

I have. I learned not to get myself to emotionally involved though. Visiting is one thing, I'm not sure I could do what you did ny... I've seen too many relatives die to do it willingly, but major kudos to you for being there when they had no family to be there for them... I'm sure somewhere down the road, major good juju is heading you way

[tcripp]

I wish I had the ability to do that. I live 1.5 to 2 hours away from where I work, so getting involved with my patients during off hours isn't an option.

[hatelilpeepees]

Yes, we actually adopted a nursing home that is less than 1 mile from our main station. We go by every other Sunday and bring our dogs (just to the common area, not in the rooms). They really love the pets, since they are not allowed to have one. I can promise you that they have inspired us way more than we have inspired them. You have to remember that many of these people have led very interesting lives (war stories, the depression, invention of many devices we take for granted).

[DwayneEMTP]

I wish I had the ability to do that. I live 1.5 to 2 hours away from where I work, so getting involved with my patients during off hours isn't an option.

I wanna get sick in your neighborhood!

I'm old, and homely, so you even get bonus Karma points for taking care of me in your off hours...

Lucky girl...

[tcripp]

Dwayne -->

I sure hope I get to meet you in November.

[Tyler_EMT]

I love talking with them. I was in the Army for about 9 months before my knee broke and I was discharged. Being discharged from the Army i what brought me to EMS. So when I have a proud elderly patient who wants to talk about the military i'm all ears. I've talked to men who have served on D-Day, and in Pearl Harbor and when they talk and paint a picture in your mind about how it was its better than any movie you could watch.

[DFIB]

Our patients are complete beings; mind, body and spirit. Anytime we can holistically treat them we are nurturing them and ourselves as complete beings. We all need to give and receive affection. My heart goes out to the elderly that have been stored away as if they had never been young, vibrant beings. As if they had never had dreams, aspirations, love, and successes in life. I think we should take the opportunity to spend time with them every time we can, on or off the clock. I have never regretted it.

Edited October 17, 2011 by DFIB