Monday, March 20, 2023

My friend Janis is in the ER tonight


Janis is a dancer with the kindest heart imaginable.  This photo was taken some years ago.

Friends of Janis and I have been staying with her for the past week because she has Parkinson's, complicated in the last month by orthostatic hypotension and numerous issues causing nausea, diarrhea, and dizziness.  She has fainted and fallen.  She has been to the ER 6 times this month.  Each time it was determined that she didn't need hospital admission (?!) despite the fact that she is 74 years old, can't stand up for long, feed herself or take her meds without help and lives alone.  

Today we finally were able to have a home health care nurse come to do an assessment which was followed by a phone call to a physician who completed the assessment.  Her standing diastolic blood pressure was 49!  The doctor said she need to go to the ER immediately.  The nurse instructed Janis to refuse discharge from the ER this time.  The hospital didn't tell her that she could refuse to be discharged.  It's called "appealing the discharge" and gives a person 24 hours in the hospital at which time they again "appeal the discharge."  Our goal is to have her admitted so that she can be discharged to an acute care rehab or acute care at home through something called COPES for low-income people.  

 Because Janis is so weak and her diastolic and systolic blood pressures are so low, I'm hopeful that they will admit her this time -- that she gets the medical attention she needs.

I've been up since 4:00 this morning, caregiving for Janis from 6:30 until her daytime caregiver arrived for the nurse and doctor assessment.  I'm an early bird.  Her daytime caregiver is a night owl and is staying at the hospital with Janis now.  When I left the hospital, we had been in the overflowing ER for nearly 5 hours.  There was a steady stream of people of all ages suffering and needing medical attention in an understaffed hospital with a limited amount of beds.

I'm going to get some sleep so that I can help out again tomorrow.  

12 comments:

Ellen D. said...

I am sorry to hear about your friend, Janis. I sure hope she gets the help she needs.

am said...

Thank you, Ellen. After getting some sleep, I'm back at the hospital with Janis. We are all so relieved that she was not discharged and that when a bed is available, she will be admitted. She's doing much better now that she has had IV hydration but because she has a hard time eating or drinking, hydration remains a problem. She is finally getting the care she needs.

NewRobin13 said...

I am so sorry to hear about your friend Janis. I hope all goes well for her. You are a very kind and supportive friend, am.

Linda Sue said...

Pleased to know that your friend has had you and others to champion her and represent her in the ER, which is a nightmare in the best of times. You are well appreciated! I went to the
Er three times and was sent home with nothing but a Kleenex every time, in dire pain, ,finally the last ER visit discovered that I had indeed broken my neck, and was sent to a neurologist within the week, emergency surgery within three days.
St. Joe's is a mess, understaffed and incompetent. I hope the best for your friend and thank you for being her advocate! She really is lucky to have you.

am said...

Robin and Linda Sue -- Thank you so much for caring about my friend.

I'm back at the hospital and so relieved to find that Janis has been admitted to the ER and is waiting for a bed to be available on the Medical Floor. She doing much better with IV hydration. The night ER nurses have been exemplary. It's shift change now. It's getting lighter outside despite the cloud cover. I couldn't do this without Janis' friend, Kathy, who is Janis' power of attorney for health care. Kathy has been acting the part of a social worker until Janis has a social worker. Kathy is amazing. I'm not good at what she has been doing. Janis is fortunate to have friends who have stepped up in so many ways for her.

Beth said...

This kind of situation is so frustrating and awful -- thankfully, with the help of you and Kathy, your friend will get the attention and care she has been needing. A lot can be done for Parkinson's patients, and I hope her quality of life will improve. May you have strength and peace in what you are doing.

am said...

Beth -- Thank you for your kind wishes and understanding.

ellen abbott said...

so sad that our medical community in so many places does not respond in the way it should. is it because there is no national health care or because staff is burned out or what. I hope your friend gets the care she needs. this country does not care and the sick unless you are rich. that said, I feel very lucky that my husband received the immediate care he needed and when he wasn't responding to treatment they transferred him to a bigger better hospital.

am said...

Ellen --Once my friend made it through the "gateway" that so many don't make it through, she has gotten good care. It took 6 tries for us to understand that she could refuse to be discharged due to it not being safe for her to live alone. It has been sobering yesterday and today to see so many people of all ages in dire straits due to health problems.

Colette said...

It's heartbreaking when the healthcare system doesn't do the right thing. I'm glad she has such good friends to help her get the care that she needs.

am said...

Colette -- That's so true that good friends can make all the difference in the world, including blog friends.

37paddington said...

Thank God Janis has you and her other friends who are willing to be her advocates. When my aunt was declining in her latter years, I asked a health care attorney what would have happened to her if she hadn't had nieces around to fight for her to get proper home care, and he said, "when people don't have advocates, they die sooner." it was so sobering. So I am very grateful that Janis has you.