Surgery 4/23 fractured wrist

[ODAT]

Mom was going to sit on her seat on her walker and only had one side locked. It slipped from under her. She fractured her wrist. Story is really long about hospital stay. But she will finally have surgery on Monday. They are going to put a plate in her wrist. She injured herself on April 4th. I tell ya, I don't know where these people get their degrees.

Haven't been around here too often with my surgery and my hubby's plus my mom's situation. Sorry I haven't kept up with everyone. I do think of you all quite often.

YUP! Finally got mom a cat. Nala is a very lovable girl. She is 11 years old. A match made in heaven thank God!

[MooseMom]

I hope everything works out well for all of you, including the new cat!

[ODAT]

Mom did very well with surgery. She is going to rehab for one or two weeks to regain her leg strength. We have been staying with her since April 4th, day and night and we are really not helping mom. She needs professional therapy to be the best and strongest she can be.

[okarol]

Poor Mom! She's lucky to have you for support! 

[paris]

Thanks for letting us know.  Poor Mom, she has had a rough time.  You are a great daughter.  I hope you get some rest and Mom fully heals and recovers.   

[Rerun]

Glad she is on the mend.  And you probably need to rest.  Nala is beautiful.

[looneytunes]

Glad to hear Mom is on the mend!  Take some time off for yourself!   

[Poppylicious]

Glad your mum is recovering. 

*huggles*

[ODAT]

Mom is doing great in the Transitional Care Unit. She will be there a week or two to regain the strength in her legs and to learn use of raised platform walker. She is taking one vicodin every 4 hours and can ask for another if needed.

There is only one bad thing that happened with her hospital stay. Please let me know if anyone else has had a bad reaction to pain meds.

Mom was put fully under. Given vicodin in recovery room. Still had pain. Brought to Extended Stay area of hospital. Given a dose of iv morphine. They called the surgical PA to talk to us about pain. I told him that mom had percocet at home which she had just been prescribed before surgery. She had been taking vicodin every 4 hours and her home nurse told us to ask primary for percocet. The surgeon's office told us to hold off since after surgery she would get percocet and they didn't want her to be too tolerant of it.

So surgical pa said we will give her percocet in 4 hours, until then this morphine should take the edge off. I told him that was a good plan, and that she should not take dilaudid as it made her see things and get emotional.

I got a call from my sister at 2:30 the next day. She was crying and said mom had been VERY upset, confused and crying since noon and she could not get her to stop. I told her to tell nurse to give her anti-anxiety. The nurse was in the room and my sister told me, they are giving her prozac (her regular dose). I said 'no! anti-anxiety like ativan.' She told the nurse.

I got there 30 min later and mom was still in the same state. They were JUST giving her an iv injection of an anti-anxiety med. I asked them what pain meds has she been given. They said percocet and dilaudid. I said "WHO authorized the dilaudid?!" They looked kind of scared and looked at each other. The nurse said have you talked to the doctor? I said I just got here and I told "him" (surgical pa was in hallway and I pointed out that way) to not give her that. They said we only gave her a small dose.

Then I found out that the reason they switched her from extended care to the hospital was that mom was confused and they do not keep confused patients in extended. OK, do any of you lame brains realize that a bad side effect of morphine, percocet, and dilaudid IS confusion?

I called primary and said is there any way you can put in her charts to NOT give her dilaudid? They said you have to tell them on a case by case basis. I said I DID!

I told the nurses there that I'd rather she be in pain than to be like this. One nurse said "oh, a lot of the families feel that way." Oh, so now you are saying you realize it's the drug doing this to my mom.

Mom was crying so hard I could not get her to even acknowledge me. She kept saying "I want my mommy, I want Joyce." That is her sister who passed away years ago. I told her they were in heaven. She said 'why, were they in an accident?!?!" OMG. I told her "I want my mommy back."

What can I do. I'm waiting for a survey on how they did. When mom was in hospital early April there were issues then too.

wow, that was a rant that I didn't know I had in me.

[looneytunes]

ODAT, it sounds like situation normal in the good ole health care system...anymore it seems like without an advocate in the room 100% of the time, the patient is in more danger in a hospital than they would be at home.  Good on you for having that rant!  Sounds like it was well deserved!