Be wary of horrible hospital care
Jason McFarley
The Bottom Line
Call me somewhat biased in opinion, but my 73-year-old grandmother, Marguerite McFarley, seems to me a thoroughly fair individual. In the same breath (or half-hour-long story), she can recite for you all that's right with the world and, on occasion, some of what's wrong with it.
Go ahead, ask her how her day was; and of the past 24 hours she'll recount the good, the bad ...
The ugly? Yeah, you know, the people and circumstances that add more gray to her already-silver crown — those things on her "list."
Oh, I've heard all sorts of gripes, but lately at the top of Grandmother's list are two uglies: nurses and hospitals — not all of them but indeed a very "unpretty" few. Of course, Grandmother hasn't sworn off medical treatment altogether, it's just that going to get it makes her think twice now.
Me too. Especially if those in charge of adminstering care fall far short of fulfilling their duties. Just so we're on the same page, we're talking negligence here.
I told you what a judicious woman my grandmother is. She is not one to cry foul if that is not the case. And it is the case.
First, some background: Last January, Grandmother underwent double bypass surgery at Hospital X, where she remained in recovery for about two weeks.
Now on to Point No. 1: While in recovery, Grandmother was completely reliant on Hospital X's nursing staff. On one occasion, she remembers having to use the restroom and buzzing for a nurse to help her do so.
After more than 45 minutes of unanswered signaling, Grandmother's bladder yielded to forces of nature. With still no response from any nurse, she phoned my grandfather, who subsequently called the hospital to tell someone to check on his soaked and understandably upset spouse.
The buzzer, the hospital staff found, was defective. You think?
Point No. 2: Hospital X's policy is to assign patients a "nurse for the day." That is, a single nurse who attends to a patient for the duration of one day.
On one morning in particular, a nurse walked into Grandmother's room and informed her that she'd be her nurse for the day.
That was the last time Grandmother saw the woman. Fact is, it was the last time she saw any nurse until well after lunch time, when a different woman came into her room.
By then, it was hours past the scheduled time for my grandmother to take her prescribed medication. And in the span between not getting her pills and finally taking them, Grandmother remembers feeling very ill.
Wait, there's more.
Point No. 3: another day, another nurse. This time my grandmother needed assistance bathing herself. Having had heart surgery just days before, her arm movement was restricted, to say the least.
She asked a nurse to help her wash her back and underarms. The nurse consented to the back washing, but said Grandmother would be on her own in washing under her arms.
Grandmother appealed to her. How could she reach to wash beneath her arms? Or, if she could, would she suffer some very painful consequences?
After listening to her, the nurse apparently decided Grandmother's bathing was finished. She flung the wash cloth at the woman in the tub and walked angrily out of the room.
There you have it. Three scenarios, three inexplicable and wholly unnecessary outcomes.
But I propose another scenario. One day, months after her stay at the hospital, my grandmother sees a picture of Hospital X's president in the local newspaper. He and a patient are mugging for the camera while a photo caption just below praises Hospital X's services to the community.
Yet realizing that she got the shaft from Hospital X's staff, my grandmother asks to speak to the president. She is denied, but as a consolation she can talk to a representative from the president's office.
Grandmother is not satisfied with this option and for the next year she sends correspondence and phones Hospital X to set up an appointment with Mr. President. She is denied time and again.
The truth of the matter is, this is how the events really happened. It's a shame, too, because all Grandmother wanted to do was tell the Big Cheese about her experiences at the hospital.
She didn't want to get involved in a lawsuit. She didn't want any of the nurses in question to lose their jobs. She just wanted to tell her story. Given the circumstances of her hospital visit, the very least the Big Cheese could offer her is his ear.
Bottom line here: well, that's hard to say. I could tell you that everyone deserves the chance to tell his or her story. Or I could warn you to be a cautious when it comes to investing your trust in medical care providers.
Instead, I'll borrow a bit from Jerry Springer: Until next time, take care of yourselves — and my grandmother.
Jason McFarley is a student in the First Year of Studies. His column appears every other Wednesday.
The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
All Viewpoint Stories for Wednesday, March 1, 2000
