OT: Mike & I have Pneumonia!

Dori,

I'm glad you got him moved, really glad you had options. Surprised to learn they wouldn't let you bring his machine. Very glad you were able to educate that Respiratory Therapist... wish I had been a fly on that wall. .

I am screaming mad that a facility cannot follow simple directions on how to apply his mask. Its not rocket science! Also, how can the first facility not tell the difference between 'every 4 hours & 'every 4 hours AS NEEDED'. Again, it tells that the staff doesn't bother to fully read orders.

This does point out that everyone who either has family or themselves in one of these facilities - ALL patients need family & friends to be their advocate. I'm so glad Mike has you, one of the very best advocates out there.

You need to make time for yourself to rest & heal. You even sound tired in your post. Mike needs you & if you get sick again that won't help him. Hopefully you can relax since he is in a better facility...at least they provide PAP machines there, even if you did have to educate the RT.

I'm still praying for you both.

Jen

Really reaffirms my fear of if ever I ended up in the hospital since my husband, sweet as he is, would never be very good as an advocate. Let's hope it doesn't ever happen.

Hugs to you Dori. Prayers for you and Mike. Hang in there. You sound so tired.

France

kaiasgram wrote:

ems wrote:Dori... always thinking about you and Mike and praying this turns out to be an advanced facility.

I second that. Dori, thank you for your updates, Your endurance is inspirational.

Agreed on all counts. I, too, thank you so much for taking the time to update us. Bless your heart.

Kiralynx wrote:Just catching up, Dori (taking care of my Dad, who came out of a rehab center with two huge pressure sores on his heels).

Sending all good thoughts to you and Mike.

I remembered from my working days that they used heel guards in hospitals so I was able to "request" them for Mike at rehab. I also always make sure to loosen up the blankets at his feet. But there's so much we don't know, caretakers need advanced degrees. I hope your Dad heals quickly with your loving care. It seems at this rehab they're very concerned about skin breakdown and examine his body carefully when they help him undress and automatically use the heel guards at night. Thanks to all for your good thoughts!

ems wrote:

BlackSpinner wrote:
I didn't want to add to your stress but the idea that the staff was incapable of learning how to put on a mask and turn on the cpap machine begs the question on how did they get certified enough to work there?
I am glad you found another place for him, hopefully it is good enough for YOU to recover properly from your pneumonia.

It appears that Sleep Apnea (and the use of a machine and mask) is still in its infancy and seldom recorded when one enters such a facility, much less understood - hence no need to get certified. We have to make family members aware of this until finally it's as simple as taking one's temperature.

Dori... always thinking about you and Mike and praying this turns out to be an advanced facility.

Certified as in certified to work as a health care worker. They had to pass exams to get the job. How hard is it to learn to put a mask on? they had someone try to train them on "push this button, check that strap" and couldn't figure it out. How the hell did they get this job?

Dori - sorry you are still going through so much with Mike! I hope this new rehab works out better!!

I knew about heel guards because I had a bad pressure sore on one of my heels about 10 years ago and the nurses were coming in to take care of that. It's because I sleep on my back (because of RA pain) and I don't move during the night. My body knows it will cause pain! The nurses told me about the heel guards. I kept them and have used them off and on whenever I have a problem starting again.

I wish I had known about Mike's pressure sores because I MAY have been able to save them getting bad. At least, this new facility is aware of some more things than the other one!!

I never knew these existed either!
http://www.amazon.com/Essential-Medical ... protectors

DoriC wrote:

Kiralynx wrote:Just catching up, Dori (taking care of my Dad, who came out of a rehab center with two huge pressure sores on his heels).

Sending all good thoughts to you and Mike.

I remembered from my working days that they used heel guards in hospitals so I was able to "request" them for Mike at rehab. I also always make sure to loosen up the blankets at his feet. But there's so much we don't know, caretakers need advanced degrees. I hope your Dad heals quickly with your loving care. It seems at this rehab they're very concerned about skin breakdown and examine his body carefully when they help him undress and automatically use the heel guards at night. Thanks to all for your good thoughts!

Hawthorne wrote:I wish I had known about Mike's pressure sores because I MAY have been able to save them getting bad. At least, this new facility is aware of some more things than the other one!!

It was Kiralynx's Dad with pressure sores. I don't think I could stand another problem like that. As it is, Mike's face was a mess today because they tightened his mask so tight. They knew I was MAD and kept checking his face during the day and using A&D ointment. I almost decided not to allow them to put it on tonight but his face finally started to look a little better before I left tonight so I told them to use his other mask (UltraMirageFF) so maybe it won't hit in the same place. The ironic part is that he slept pretty good with less leaks of course according to the machine data and was more alert today! Why can't someone just do their job the right way!

Dori,

I'm like you - why can't someone in a healthcare or rehab facility DO THEIR JOB CORRECTLY! Its so frustrating, and I feel for you & Mike. Hopefully tonight will be better for you. Prayers coming your way.

Jen

Hope I can get some help with this. The LED data showed only 2.5hrs of usage, nobody knows why or if Mike had the mask on or off or if the machine was on when they checked, and Mike can't tell me, they're supposed to be checking him every hour, I saw the orders on his chart and the Charge Nurse's signature. She also told the staff that I know how to check the machine data. I started a riot with the Administrator, Dir. of Nursing,Unit Mgr, Supervisor,etc this morning and all kind of changes will be made to insure this won't happen again. Here's the problem, I brought home the card tonight to read the data on ResScan and it says "please connect to flow generator or insert card". I have everything set properly on the machine and I've been able to d/l before so can anyone explain what may have happened? Could the staff have changed the setting so I can't read the data? It's hard to believe they would even know how to do that because they don't even know how to fit a mask properly and they keep pushing the big button instead of the On/Off button. I finally had to put a piece of tape over the big button! I'm using the card that came with the machine from their DME with Mike's usual profile. Any ideas? I'm ready to explode. My daughter(The Lawyer) said if there was any tampering with the machine without my knowledge(since I'm the one who set up the machine myself at the Resp Therapist(DME) request and with his knowledge and approval of the Charge Nurse, she smells a rat. I'm hoping it was just a glitch of some sort but my heart is sinking fast! On the bright side, Mike is doing much better and we'll be scheduling a discharge conference early next week. Thanks.

They can't do anything to block you from reading the card.

I have seen a similar message using ResScan on more than one occasion and it ended up being some sort of bad connection. I just kept inserting the SD card until ResScan could see it.

You might do the usual if you haven't already....reboot computer which of course includes a shut down of ResScan and hopefully when it come up again it will be able to find the SD card.

Dori,

Keep working toward that discharge conference, its the light at the end of the tunnel.

I don't have the same machine as you are using but I have a theory. Perhaps some dummy, dialing the knob & pushing buttons changed some settings during the night & somehow did a rewrite of the card, damaging it so by accident you couldn't read it. That would not account for the only 2.5 hours of use. Some idiot on night shift probably either turned the machine, removed his mask or both.

I'll pray for you & Mike that you get him home soon. Hang on to that light at the end of your tunnel.

Jen

Pugsy wrote:They can't do anything to block you from reading the card.

I have seen a similar message using ResScan on more than one occasion and it ended up being some sort of bad connection. I just kept inserting the SD card until ResScan could see it.

You might do the usual if you haven't already....reboot computer which of course includes a shut down of ResScan and hopefully when it come up again it will be able to find the SD card.

So I didn't do the usual!! Really!! How did you know that??? Thank you, thank you!
Here's what the data showed! The mask is supposed to be put on at 9PM. It wasn't turned on until 11PM and only for 30mins, no events, and then nothing until 6AM to 8AM with an AHI=14.0 for those 2hrs, Obs=7.7, Hyp=1.7,CAs=4.6,Leaks=14.4(95%). I'm going straight to the Admin tomorrow and demanding immediate action like bringing in someone capable or else. I think my daughter may be right, there's some medical liability going on here!

Dear, sweet Dori, kicking butt and taking names!
I love it!
Mike is a lucky guy!

You rock, Dori! Kick butt! They need to take care of him while he's there.

Good luck
France