A Little Communication Would Go a Long Way

How many problems could be solved by sharing information?

Photo by Cristina Gottardi on Unsplash

Since “Dad’s” admission to the rehabilitation facility was late on a Friday afternoon, things were bound to feel scattered until Monday.

In this case, scattered felt more like abandoned to the whims of the facility with. It was clear either no one knew anything at all about their new resident or hadn’t bothered to check.

No sign in his room about fall risk.

No alarm on the bed or chair.

Not even the yellow socks that universally indicate a person is prone to falling. A brilliant idea, those yellow socks. A signal to all medical providers, at least in this area that at a glance identify a patient at high risk of falls in any setting.

Ok, whether or not the yellow socks are universal across all healthcare settings everywhere, I’m not sure. But it is certainly true in this area so I expect everyone to know.

The other complaint for Sunday was when family arrived, he was sitting with only a sheet around him. No gown, no clothing, no dignity. Perhaps he was in the middle of being cleaned up, but if that were the case, it was a long wait.

The good news on this first weekend was that Dad appeared to be getting his IV antibiotics. On Saturday, he received it while his wife was in the room, Sunday was only by report.

I maintain some of these issues could have been prevented with a better admission event. A simple greeting at the door, directions to his room and then even a brief exchange of information would have gone a long way toward making this transition easier for all. Is it so wrong to expect basic information about patient specific needs to be important?

Communication is a key skill that can resolve so many issues. This holds true in any life situation, but was a critical oversight in this transition from excellent hospital care to a skilled nursing/rehab facility.

Did this add to Dad’s agitation and frustration that led him to remove his peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) early Monday morning, thus restricting the ability to give the antibiotics?

That might be a leap, but we’ll never know.

Adding insult to injury is the knowledge of how much money is paid by Medicare and insurance to this profit-based company for care of some of the most vulnerable among us.