This is KitKatz Daughter

[natnnnat]

grumpy about care homes due to my previous bad experience though it turned out the care at the place we chose, though less specialised, was far more caring and kind.  THANK GOD.  I hope you find good people in this new spot KK

[anniede]

I hope the care home is up to scratch.

I hope so too or all hell is going to break loose.   KK will do that "exorcist" spin thing will her head a split second before it explodes all over the place.  LOL

Anne
(KK's little sis)

[okarol]

I hope the care home is up to scratch.

I hope so too or all hell is going to break loose.   KK will do that "exorcist" spin thing will her head a split second before it explodes all over the place.  LOL

Anne
(KK's little sis)

If that happens, please video it! 
Good luck Kit!

[Darthvadar]

I hope the care home is up to scratch.

I hope so too or all hell is going to break loose.   KK will do that "exorcist" spin thing will her head a split second before it explodes all over the place.  LOL

Anne
(KK's little sis)

I'd pay a ton of dark chocolate to see that!....

Love to my pet dragon... AKA, Kitz!....

Darth....

[kitkatz]

Thank God for Anniede my sister.  She came here this morning, got a hold of the nursing staff supervisor and we started whacking at moles with the big stick. 

[anniede]

That's what family is for, right, KK?   

To summarize -

KK called me at 10:15 last night with a long list of complaints about the care she had received in the less than 20 hours she had been there, which included:

- taking 20 minutes to an hour to respond to a nurse call
- not keeping up with her pain management well and taking 40 minutes to get her meds
- taking 6 freaking hours to change out her wound dressing
- the food they served did not align with what the doctors had told her to eat
- lack of communication between staff, departments, and her so she had no idea what was going on
- not getting the wifi turned on on her computer

She begged me to come over in the morning and bring my baseball bat.  (Personally, I wanted to bring the 10 lb sledgehammer out in the garage, but that's just me!)

So, I dragged my mom out of bed at 6:45 so I wouldn't have to bring the kids and trekked on over to her care center to give them hell.  After saying hi to KK, I tracked down a nursing supervisor and dragged him back to her room.  Poor Russell...he got hit by both barrels but he promised to solve or issues right away.

Not surprisingly, things started happening right after we talked to him.  The nutritionist showed up and helped her figure out the food issue.  Then 2 different social workers (the care center and her insurance company) both arrived to talk to her, and then PT arrived to set up a time to come and explain what would be going on.  All the while, the nurses were being extra attentive to KK and the two other women in her room.

So, In the span of an hour and a half, we got a lot of shit handled and KK was much happier....

Oh, and don't get me started on the transportation driver that took her from the care center to dialysis yesterday.  He was a total ass, telling her that since she wasn't in the right wheelchair he couldn't take her, complaining about how long it took to get the right wheelchair and transfer her over, and then grumbling about the oxygen tank that was a bit too unwieldy for him to load and unload. 

I got a hold of her cell phone, looked up the transit company's phone number, and gave them an earful about that driver.  "I do NOT want him back here EVER.  He was rude and unkind to my sister, acting as though he was doing us a favor instead of doing his job, and I won't have that!"  Poor girl - I went into her good and she couldn't stop apologizing.  We should hear from a manager in the next day or so about that incident.

I have a feeling that I'll be making more early-morning jaunts to the care center to make sure they know that KK is being watched over by a "VERY ATTENTIVE" sister who won't take shit from anyone.  ;-)

Of course, I do something nice for my sister and my car decides to pay me back by not starting.  *sigh*  Stupid Karma owes me one!

Anne
(KK's little sis)

[galvo]

I reckon a full-time job as a Patient Advocate beckons!

[willowtreewren]

I know this isn't funny, but I couldn't help laughing out loud at this very special patient advocate doing the advocating! 

Aleta

[kitkatz]

I have thrown up all afternoon.
I will let my social media person update you all here. I am a little loopy.

[anniede]

I have thrown up all afternoon.
I will let my social media person update you all here. I am a little loopy.

A little loopy?!?!?!??  Oy....  *ducks and runs away*

I just got home from visiting KK and yeah, she spent a good 3 hours puking up everything in her stomach.  I'm hoping that she  picked up a bug while at Dialysis yesterday but since it had to do with her gastric system, they went ahead and took a few xrays to see if everything was okay.  Still waiting for those to be read.

Between the throwing up and the meds and the pain and all that had happened this morning, KK was starting to mentally climb the walls by the time 6:30 PM rolled around so she asked for a anti-anxiety pill.  Three requests later, it still hadn't showed up.  That's when the nurse finally told us that they had to call the doc and get a RX and y'all know how long THAT takes. 

I plan to return early tomorrow morning to check on  KK before I head off to my best friend's son's 10th birthday party in the High Desert.  I think the more times they see me (the bitchy sister) around, the better her care will get.  At least they were keeping up with her meds after our complaint....though the kitchen staff still needs to be smacked around a bit.

Anne
((KK's little sister))

[okarol]

  I just Skyped for about 45 minutes with kitkatz - she finally got the anti-anxiety pill at 9:30 PM and she seemed to be ready to sleep now.
She's so grateful for the help her sister and hubby have given her. She worries she is wearing them out. 
Tomorrow she will hopefully have a smaller oxygen tank, and street clothes to wear when they transport her to dialysis.
I don't know what time she has D but I know she'd appreciate company if anyone wants to Skype tomorrow.
  I hope this stomach stuff is done with, poor girl. Good news is her temperature went back to normal.
I love the bitchy sister!! 

[Jean]

Can I borrow your sister when my time comes Kit??? Hoe you are feeling at least a little bit better today.

[aharris2]

I'm glad to see what you are posting. It shows people how much can actually be accomplished if you and/or your family/patient advocate speak up. This is so important. Kudos to you all.

Kitkatz, get better and get back home.

[anniede]

UPDATE 

The Care Center sent KK back to the ER this morning.  Seems that her nausea and puking didn't stop through out the night so around midnight they made the decision to send her back in and get her re-evaluated.  I tracked her down this morning around 6 AM and she was still in the ER and getting ready to go down to do a CAT scan.  Her husband is with her now - I don't think he's seen his bed in the last 24 hours, poor guy - and I hope to be kept updated once they figure out what's up with her.

Cross your fingers and pray that its just a stomach bug.  KK doesn't need any more craziness in her life right now....

Anne
((KK's little sister)

[anniede]

Can I borrow your sister when my time comes Kit???

My motto is "Mess with my family, you mess with ME!"  LOL  And this is just my sister - you ought to see me when someone messes with my kids.  Mama Bear comes out and she is NOT happy!

I'm not a total bitch when dealing with the staff.  I'm nice and respectful but am quite clear about what sort of care I want my sister to have.  And most importantly, I try to talk to the right people (aka - supervisors and managers that can do something), write down names and departments, go out of my way to thank people for their time and help, and follow up as much as I can to ensure these things are handled. 

I also try to stand between KK and the staff so they don't have to take the full brunt of "I haven't had my meds and they've F'ed up my food for the 10th time and I'm PISSED!" dragon lady.  I'm like her - I get VERY grumpy when I'm in pain and can go from 0 to bitchy in 10.2 seconds, especially if someone is being stupid around me - so I don't take whatever she says personally.  I know it's just the pain talking.  ;-)


Anne
((KK's (bitchy) little sister    ))

[Darthvadar]

I'm with you, Anne....

When the 'professionals' upset my mum, they're living VERY dangerously!... I'm not known as 'That B***h in the Wheelchair' for nothing!....

Hope this is just a little blip for Kitz....

Love...

Darth...

[Darthvadar]

Just had a text from my pet dragon....

Panic over(ish!)... She has a faulty enzyme in her pancreas causing the vomiting... They should be able to get on top of it...

She's also going to a new place for rehab... Needs a change of scene... Hopefully, this one will be up to a better standard!...

Love to all...

Darth....

[Riki]

wow, Kitz.. you're totally going through the mill.  hope things start looking up for you soon.

Anne, I could sure use you when I have to go to my transplant hospital in Nova Scotia.  Over there I'm a non-compliant, attention seeking, trouble maker, even though in reality, I'm none of those things.  They treat me like crap, and I'm usually on my own with no family nearby.  I'm the kind of person who cries when they get angry, and it makes it hard to articulate to anyone what I'm trying to say, because I can't yell through the sobs.  I really need someone who can speak for me.  I have called my mom before, who's called the nurse's station back, long distance, to yell at them for me.

[anniede]

  UPDATE 

Well, it seems that they are admitting our little troublemaker for the night so they can do dialysis and keep an eye on her condition, with hope of shipping her off to a new place tomorrow (maybe?).

They're officially calling it "pancreatitis".  As I tell people, "When KK gets sick, she gets SICK."  Oy....

Anne
(KK's little sis)

[okarol]

The little troublemaker and her bitchy sister! 

[Darthvadar]

Anne, just a thought as you're trying to deal with step-down care....

Would the insurance company be interested in providing some home care for our Kitz instead of a nursing home placement???... It would  be far cheaper for them, Kitz would be saved from a home (and if I'm honest, the home saved from Kitz!)... LOL!!!!!....

Someone coming in a few times in the day to help with personal care, and perhaps preparing a meal, a physio coming in to get her mobile, and perhaps a nurse visit here and there,  and most of all,  our Kitz recovering in the comfort and privacy of her own home could be worth looking into.... 

Just a thought!....

Darth...

[Riki]

They're officially calling it "pancreatitis". 

That's what I had.. was caused by gallstones blocking the ducts... painful, OMG.. I've never felt such pain.. I wasn't puking, or anything like that, though

[kitkatz]

I know angels walk among us. I have had five or more helping me since arriving in ER last night. anyone who has seen my veins now I am an almost impossible stick. Average Pokes for an IV are 3, They sent my ER nurse down to ct scan to place Iv. she walked in, gave me pain meds she then proceeded to put n an iv ------IN ONE TRY! THANKS ANGEL.

[Big E]

Good nurses are worth their weight in gold!  I'm so glad you're well enough to post, Kit. If there's anything I hate in this world, it's nausea and vomiting, and being in pain just makes it that much worse.

Get well soon!

[willowtreewren]

Sending hugs...

 

This ha just been a harrowing experience! I hope the worst is over and you are on the road to recovery. 

Aleta