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Weight Loss Forum / General Topics / November 2003Hospital Halts Stapling Procedures After Death
http://www.local6.com/health/2614009/detail.html I guess she would have been better off with an ECA stack. New England is having a bit of a problem with hospital errors lately. I think it's that we're in the forefront of reporting them. A couple of years ago a main Health writer for the Boston Globe died in a hospital error. It's gotten people's attention. As you know, my experience with hospital stays is that they are rife with errors. It's merely a question of whether any of them can kill you. I'm so glad that the worst ways I can screw up will only cost money. -- Wendy I read Readers Digest and they have had a 3 part article, spread over 3 months, about the nursing shortage. Due to this tremendous shortage, care isn't as thorough as it used to be. Unfortunately, not that many new people going into nursing. In addition, the majority of the nursing population now is in the baby boomer age group and will be retiring in a few years. I read that there are sometimes 1 nurse to 7-10 patients depending on the hospital. It is amazing that hospitals are surviving at all at this rate. It is really scary.... -- Email me at: perpleglow(AT)comcast.net > I guess she would have been better off with an ECA stack. > [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > > -- Wendy > I read Readers Digest and they have had a 3 part article, spread over 3 > months, about the nursing shortage. Due to this tremendous shortage, care [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > Email me at: > perpleglow(AT)comcast.net Perple, I did my time in the units and in the cath lab. When I began in CICU, I would never be assigned more than two patients. When I left, three, including two on the vent, was standard. I was exhausted every night. Consider that a nurse, an atty and an engineer come out of school making within ten percent of each other. Five years later, adjusted for inflation, the nurse is about ten percent better, the engineer about 50 percent better off and the lawyer had doubled his salary. I consult now for an hourly rate about three times what I made in the hospital. When I first left the hospital for personal reasons relating to demanding schedules compromising my ability to raise my kid the way I wanted to, I always thought I would go back when he didn't need me as much. Now, I think I would be sort of crazy to do so. Being pulled to floors where I have no experience, staying extra shifts because the replacements don't show up and reading about a hospital's bottom line in the newspaper when I am bringing home 50K (which includes an enormous amount of OT that is NOT optional) is rediculous. There are a few nurses who truly love working in hospitals and would never be anywhere else. And then there are those who can't do anything else. Furthermore, the tendency of hospital administration is to promote the good nurses to management positions. Good bedside skills do not translate into good management skills, unfortunately. And people are getting older and sicker. With all the outpatient facilities available, there are no 'routine' cases in the hospital. Only the sickest of the sick show up there and they are booted out of the door the next day. So, while the number of patients per nurse increases, so does the acuity. When I began taking care of heart surgery patients, they stayed in CICU for at least two days. Now if they get out of surgery early in the morning, they may go to the floor that night or early the next morning. A one day post op heart surgery patient is a physically demanding piece of work. I couldn't imagine having more than one at a time. Next time you go to a hospital, see if you notice any floor nurses who look relaxed and in control..... j > > I guess she would have been better off with an ECA stack. > > [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > > > > -- Wendy That is amazing, I don't see how they do it. I am not a nurse, I was just quoting what I read in an interesting magazine article. However, I don't think I could do it. > > I read Readers Digest and they have had a 3 part article, spread over 3 > > months, about the nursing shortage. Due to this tremendous shortage, care [quoted text clipped - 67 lines] > > > > > > -- Wendy > I guess she would have been better off with an ECA stack. > > New England is having a bit of a problem with hospital errors lately. I > think it's that we're in the forefront of reporting them. A couple of > years ago a main Health writer for the Boston Globe died in a hospital > error. It's gotten people's attention. Yeah but you also have to look at the acuity of the patients in the hospital. New England hospitals have take sicker patients than others. I believe the medical error you are talking about is related to the writer who received triple doses of chemo. It was ugly. There are too many people who should have caught that error. As a nurse, I am not allowed to order or prescribe medications but I am also forbidden to give meds that I am not well educated in to patients and have a responsibility to hold them if I feel they may be in error. Believe it or not, it happens frequently and no doc or pharmacist has ever been offended when I called to say, "Did you really want to give that??" > As you know, my experience with hospital stays is that they are rife with > errors. It's merely a question of whether any of them can kill you. That's why people like Barbara's husband do so well. You have to be involved with the care of your loved one and keep abreast of what should be happening or else errors do happen. > I'm so glad that the worst ways I can screw up will only cost money. Nurses seldom make the same error twice. I have had to counsel many nurses who made errors in the past. I assure you they were devastated. But, if you wanna play with the big boys, you will make big boy errors..... Fortunately, the human body is the most resiliant piece of equipment I know and errors are seldom fatal. There was an article about the incidence of medication errors written 2 years ago. It stated that one in four patients were the victims of medication errors. Going back and reading the study, there was controversy surrounding the way that errors were defined and counted. Also, certain adverse events and allergic reactions were counted as errors even though they did not result from poor processes. Having said that, the report which was quite lengthy went into great detail about refining processes and implementing safeguards. It was useful advice even though the info was skewed. And by the way, I know a lot of people who would rather see mistakes made with their health than with their money:) You are not off the hook. > -- Wendy > "Wendy" <no-spam@mtholyoke.edu> wrote in message >> I'm so glad that the worst ways I can screw up will only cost money. > And by the way, I know a lot of people who would rather see mistakes made > with their health than with their money:) You are not off the hook. No, I'm not, but my malpractice insurance is cheaper! Wendy >http://www.local6.com/health/2614009/detail.html Sounds like they just hit the odds. The death rate for these procedures is around 1 in 200. Hospitals always investigate after a death in which there could have been surgeon or hospital error. This has nothing to do with any nursing shortage, there was just an error or equipment malfunction during the surgery. You can avoid nursing shortages by checking the nurse to patient ratio in the hospital you plan to go to. This is one of the many reasons that I'm switching Marty from Alexandria to Fair Oaks Hospital for future admissions. BTW, Marty had an inferior vena cava filter inserted yesterday, so the majority of his problems should be over. Although he has metastatic cancer, the few tumors in his abdomen haven't grown in 6 months; all his complications have come from bleeding from anticoagulation. For his cancer, we're starting him on Iressa in a few days. His doc has had very good results with his other throat cancer patients, and you don't need a biopsy for this one. My pharmacist said Iressa is $70 a pill, and so when I got the bottle home I had to open it and look at the pills. Not a very impressive looking for all that money <G>, round and pinkish red. Of course, it's what's inside that counts. My exercise for the month of October and early November has sucked the constant emergencies. I can hardly wait to go skating this morning. Barbara Hirsch, Publisher OBESITY MEDS AND RESEARCH NEWS The latest in obesity research and weight loss drug development http://www.obesity-news.com/ > >http://www.local6.com/health/2614009/detail.html > [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] > cancer, the few tumors in his abdomen haven't grown in 6 months; all > his complications have come from bleeding from anticoagulation. Glad to hear Marty is improving - this is wonderful news. Beverly > For his cancer, we're starting him on Iressa in a few days. His doc > has had very good results with his other throat cancer patients, and [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > The latest in obesity research and weight loss drug development > http://www.obesity-news.com/ > >http://www.local6.com/health/2614009/detail.html > [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > that I'm switching Marty from Alexandria to Fair Oaks Hospital for > future admissions. You also need to be vigilant on the floor. The nruse patient ratio is often misrepresented because many nurses are employed who are not actually caring for patients. I would check the salaries of the nurses. All things considered, I'm going where the money is best. Also, check for the longevity of the staff. > BTW, Marty had an inferior vena cava filter inserted yesterday, so the > majority of his problems should be over. Although he has metastatic > cancer, the few tumors in his abdomen haven't grown in 6 months; all > his complications have come from bleeding from anticoagulation. How did that go? I had dinner with a friend last night who had a pulmonary embolus a year and a half ago and nearly died. He is still on coumadin and I keep thinking that a filter would be so much better. He is reluctant but my thoughts are that my friend is young and very active and the potential risk from being anticoagulated are substantial. Was it an outpatient procedure? You said IVC - did they go in through the femoral or illiac vein? Was it painful? How long did it take? Assuming all things equal, what length of time did it take for Marty to get back to normal? > For his cancer, we're starting him on Iressa in a few days. His doc > has had very good results with his other throat cancer patients, and [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > looking for all that money <G>, round and pinkish red. Of course, it's > what's inside that counts. That's what a lot of men said about Viagra but as you stated, it is the end result:) > My exercise for the month of October and early November has sucked the > constant emergencies. I can hardly wait to go skating this morning. [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > The latest in obesity research and weight loss drug development > http://www.obesity-news.com/ >You also need to be vigilant on the floor. The nruse patient ratio is often >misrepresented because many nurses are employed who are not actually caring >for patients. I would check the salaries of the nurses. All things >considered, I'm going where the money is best. Also, check for the >longevity of the staff. I look at everything. Of the hospitals our doctor admits to, this one is the best. I could do better by going to Georgetown, but then we'd have to change doctors. >How did that go? I had dinner with a friend last night who had a pulmonary >embolus a year and a half ago and nearly died. He is still on coumadin and [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >vein? Was it painful? How long did it take? Assuming all things equal, >what length of time did it take for Marty to get back to normal? It was easy as pie. The procedure took less than an hour and Marty was waving to me as they rolled him by from the procedure room into post op. It was a day procedure and I took him home that night. They do keep you for two hours afterwards because of the puncture wound. And don't forget we're talking a pretty sick man here; so your friend would likely sail through this type of procedure. There are a lot of different kinds of filters, and I don't know which kind Marty had put in yet. Everything happened in one mad rush. However, here's a pretty comprehensive article I found: Inferior Vena Cava Filters. Siskin GP. From E-Medicine web site. http://www.emedicine.com/radio/topic762.htm Covers a number of different filters and the criteria for inserting one. Marty had this done because of a PE a little over a year ago and massive bleeding ever since. The bleeding came a lot closer to killing him than the PE ever did. If your friend is young and active, there's medical precedent for just taking him off the drugs if he's having trouble on them. Marty isn't healthy enough to consider that. My guess is they went through the jugular vein, given that the bandage is on his neck. This is the way that the team at Alexandria Hospital always does them (which surprised me) unless there is a problem with the route. Marty was in no pain at all from the procedure. He's still weak, but that is from all the problems he had. He's actually continuing to recover, and the procedure didn't set that back at all. >> My pharmacist said Iressa is $70 a pill, and so when I got the bottle >> home I had to open it and look at the pills. Not a very impressive [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] >That's what a lot of men said about Viagra but as you stated, it is the end >result:) Well, that's what a man wants from Viagra, round and pinkish <G>, and a bargain at only $10 a pill. Of course, the cost may come down now that there's competition. Barbara Hirsch, Publisher OBESITY MEDS AND RESEARCH NEWS The latest in obesity research and weight loss drug development http://www.obesity-news.com/ Thanks! I have read numerous studies but was really interested in your experience. My friend is younger than me (39ish?), runs five miles several times a week, seldom drinks and never smokes. He broils chicken for dinner and has no risk factors other than almost dying a couple of years ago from a PE. Subsequent venous studies show that he continues to have blood clots build in his lower extremities. He is on coumadin and tolerating it well. On the surface, this is not a bad idea. He is a VP of Information Services (read: geek) and sits most of the day. Those of us who know him dearly understand that when he is off work he works on vintage mustangs, paints his house and runs incessantly. I would prefer that he had a filter instead of being anticoagulated for fear of bleeding. Anyway, he is an old friend and keeps coming to me for advice. I tell him what I know but being that my clinical experience is in the intensive care units, the treatment is immediate and involves heparin, etc. Long term treatments are not an option for us:) I did the reading but was really interested in hearing how it went for a person who actually had undergone the procedure. From what I understand from your post is that although Marty is compromised, it was done as an outpatient procedure and he was no worse for the wear afterwards. As far as your content regarding choice of hospitals and the nurse:patient ratio, I support your decision. I sincerely hope that Marty is not in the hospital any time soon and that his recovery makes this a non-issue in the future. You and I are both very quick to put in writing our concerns when nursing care is not up to standard. I would very much appreciate it if the next time you had superior treatment from a nurse that you would also put it in writing with a copy to the payor source. At some point, the hospitals and the payor sources have to realize that good nurses make for good business. In fact, when you think about it, hospitals sell two things: access to fancy equipment and nursing care. j > >You also need to be vigilant on the floor. The nruse patient ratio is often > >misrepresented because many nurses are employed who are not actually caring [quoted text clipped - 66 lines] > The latest in obesity research and weight loss drug development > http://www.obesity-news.com/ >As far as your content regarding choice of hospitals and the nurse:patient >ratio, I support your decision. I sincerely hope that Marty is not in the [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] >business. In fact, when you think about it, hospitals sell two things: >access to fancy equipment and nursing care. I've run across very few bad nurses, just overworked ones. This is the reason for the poor nursing care at Alexandria Hospital. Only rarely have I run across lazy nurses. I complain on a fairly frequent basis to the hospital administrator there. So they know where I stand, and that it's staffing not the nurses themselves that are the problem. The nurses for the most part like me, because they know I've taken up their cause, I have a big mouth, I argue well, and I argue with the people who can make the decisions. Barbara Hirsch, Publisher OBESITY MEDS AND RESEARCH NEWS The latest in obesity research and weight loss drug development http://www.obesity-news.com/ |
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