More prayers needed, please

My mom was rushed to the hospital this evening about 10pm. I just got home a bit ago. I am just so upset. When the facility called me they said they went to check on my mom a little before 10 and she was incoherent, unresponsive, foaming at the mouth (sorry, TMI) and couldn't talk.
They ASSumed she was probably having a stroke and immediately called 911. Apparently the dumb asses neglected to tell the EMT's that she is also a diabetic!!!!!!! When the EMT's got her in the ambulance her blood sugar level was 18, yes, you read that right 18!! They immediately gave her the "sugar booster" shot and by the time she got to the hospital it was up to 44.
When dh and I got there it was up to 77. They gave her something to eat and she scarfed it down. By 2 am her blood sugar was 120. They released her a little before 3am.
I am so livid!!!!!!!!!! I pay an exhorbitant amount for her to be taken care of there and through their negligence she almost died. She was still pretty weak when they were releasing her.
I will be visiting the Director of the facility first thing this morning. So everybody block your ears because you'll probably hear me from around the world!!
I didn't mean for this to get so long, but I am just so frustrated with all the BS I've been putting up with lately!
Please send some good thoughts my moms' way that these things will get resolved and she can live out her days without this traumatic experience effecting her too much. Sometimes having dementia is a good thing and she won't realize all that went on.

Barb

So sorry to hear that, thinking of you.

My thoughts and prayers go out to your family during this trying time.

Thoughts and prayers going out to you. My mother is in a memory unit too.

Buzz

You and your mom are in my thoughts today, Barb.

Lee

I'd be fuming too, barb. Aren't they supposed to check patients a couple times an hour or something. Her sugar couldn't have declined that rapidly.
I would also report the incident to the local health dept. so they have an ongoing record. If more people did, these places would be held more accountable.
Your mom is luck you are there keeping them in check. Alot of people don't and their loved ones decline so fast, and family only realizes afterward, maybe they should have been around more.

Imagine I am holding your hand giving you strength and support.
Give 'em HELL, girl.

Barb, I will keep your mom in my prayers. Give 'em hell girlfriend!! They deserve everything you can dish out for being ignorant!!

Thank you everyone!
I called to make sure the Director would be in today and I have to wait until 2 this afternoon. The hospice nurse is also going to go in today and make some changes on the quality of her care. I really didn't want to give him a heads up but I've got the transfer papers from the facility to the EMTs so he can't refute anything! The ER nurses were VERY accommodating. lol
I called this morning and my mom is doing ok. She's very tired but holding her own. I wish she could kick some butt!!

Barb

homecook said:

My mom was rushed to the hospital this evening about 10pm. I just got home a bit ago. I am just so upset. When the facility called me they said they went to check on my mom a little before 10 and she was incoherent, unresponsive, foaming at the mouth (sorry, TMI) and couldn't talk.
They ASSumed she was probably having a stroke and immediately called 911. Apparently the dumb asses neglected to tell the EMT's that she is also a diabetic!!!!!!! When the EMT's got her in the ambulance her blood sugar level was 18, yes, you read that right 18!! They immediately gave her the "sugar booster" shot and by the time she got to the hospital it was up to 44.
When dh and I got there it was up to 77. They gave her something to eat and she scarfed it down. By 2 am her blood sugar was 120. They released her a little before 3am.
I am so livid!!!!!!!!!! I pay an exhorbitant amount for her to be taken care of there and through their negligence she almost died. She was still pretty weak when they were releasing her.
I will be visiting the Director of the facility first thing this morning. So everybody block your ears because you'll probably hear me from around the world!!
I didn't mean for this to get so long, but I am just so frustrated with all the BS I've been putting up with lately!
Please send some good thoughts my moms' way that these things will get resolved and she can live out her days without this traumatic experience effecting her too much. Sometimes having dementia is a good thing and she won't realize all that went on.

Barb

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Barb, we have been walking on the same road for a long time. They do not call dementia the long goodbye for nothing. I commiserate with you. Two people including my mom almost died because of similar negligence and a third had bruises found on her stomach. This shocks me because it is suppose to be one of the nicest places in the area and it is incredibly expensive and they are jacking up the prices soon.

I say, scream! I say, let it out! Those people need to hear your complaints and have a new set of protocols to ensure that this doesn't happen again and I wouldn't settle for less. This is what I do with each problem that comes along. To say that I am sorry sounds awfully hollw but I truly am. It is very sad that elderly women are not valued in our society. Hospitals don't always do all they can to save them, either. I know you love your mom and I know how hard this is. I wish for both of our sakes that there was an easier path but there is not. You just have to grit your teeth and put one foot in front of the other every single day. At least you have your family around you to support you and you can always call me for sympathy and support. I will be here for you if you want me.

Courage! As for my prayers, you have had them for a very long time now. I know you love your mom and how hard this is.

And Heather, I am sorry that you have to cope with this as well. It is not easy to watch the decline of a Beloved grandma. I helped take care of my grandma, too. Just enjoy the good days that you have left and hold her in your heart.

Hugs to you both,
Susan

I'm sorry Barb....

I'm so sorry to hear this Barb. I will be praying for your mom and your whole family. It's unfortunate, but these days the only thing that seems to get peoples attention is money. If I were you, I would be consulting an attorney about a negligence lawsuit.

Barb,
Our prayers are with you!

Mama said:

I'm so sorry to hear this Barb. I will be praying for your mom and your whole family. It's unfortunate, but these days the only thing that seems to get peoples attention is money. If I were you, I would be consulting an attorney about a negligence lawsuit.

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Mama, if Barb doesn't have an immediate bed where she can move her mother, suing the home she is at where the folks are taking care of her is like shooting yourself in the foot. It is not going to improve care, it will makes thing more adversarial at a time when Barb is stressed out to the max as it is. It is why I didn't suggest it and I am a lawyer. It is far better to work within the bureaucracy to accomplish what you need but like any bureaucracy it is very frustrating to deal with.

Best to you, Barb and I am sorry.
Susan

Our prayers are with you as well Barb!

For an update on grandma, I am sure mom was going to post sooner or later. My dad and brother went up there to pick her up for a foot doctor appt. When they got there, dad noticed she was very flushed, sweating and kinda of lethargic. Dad told the nurse that something wasn't right. So they checked her blood sugar and it was at 44. Dad gave her a glucerna and it went up to only 58. He gave her another one and some orange juice. After waiting the 20 minutes, it has only went up to like 88. The nurse practitioner came in and recommended she has a chest x-ray because they checked her lungs and they weren't clear. Now I do not know what that has to do wth her blood sugar - but they are bringing in a traveling x-ray machine and they will go from there.

That is the update so far ... I am sure mom will come in and add to this.

Thanks for letting us know. Good thoughts will continue.

heb1976 said:

For an update on grandma, I am sure mom was going to post sooner or later. My dad and brother went up there to pick her up for a foot doctor appt. When they got there, dad noticed she was very flushed, sweating and kinda of lethargic. Dad told the nurse that something wasn't right. So they checked her blood sugar and it was at 44. Dad gave her a glucerna and it went up to only 58. He gave her another one and some orange juice. After waiting the 20 minutes, it has only went up to like 88. The nurse practitioner came in and recommended she has a chest x-ray because they checked her lungs and they weren't clear. Now I do not know what that has to do wth her blood sugar - but they are bringing in a traveling x-ray machine and they will go from there.

That is the update so far ... I am sure mom will come in and add to this.

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An infection of any kind can interfere with blood sugar. I'm so sorry, y'all. I'll be thinking about you and your mom and dad and grandma. Please update us when you can.

Barb, here is a link to the long term care ombudsman in your state. Every state has an agency that serves (hopefully) to protect consumers from exactly this kind of inappropriate care. I understand what Susan said about retribution, but that is really blackmail...this should be reported. http://aging.ohio.gov/services/ombudsman/default.aspx

^Karen, it was already sent via pm. I have that covered. ;-)

Further, it was mama's suggestion to sue and not mine. I disagreed.

The question is what is causing the hypoglycemia--she has all the symptoms as you have described them. Although I am not a doctor, this is what I researched online:
http://diabetes.webmd.com/diabetes-hypoglycemia
This information comes from the Cleveland Clinic, Heather. I know from my mom's diabetes that when she has an infection her blood sugar shoots up way to high. Usually lack of eating, too much activity or being given diabetic medication to control blood sugar without eating will cause hypoglycemia. These are all good questions for the doctor. Further, she should be wearing a bracelet identifying her that she has this problem.

Oh supposively she has a bracelet as well as a button to push when she needs assistance. Funny thing is that we found them underneath her bed and the aides blaming grandma for taking them off. It is always an excuse with them. No one is held accountable for anything - they pass the blame to someone else. Just like the lens fell out of her glasses the other day and no one knows what happened to them either.

I am thinking of making an anonymous phone call to complain and have them investigated. I can handle my grandma passing because it is her time ... but I will not accept her passing because of someone's incompetence. I do not care how short handed they are. That is there job and it is their responsibility. If they cannot do there job right - then find another one for cripes sake.

Sorry ... just really upset!

edited to add : she is seeing the doctor next week and mom is having everything re-evaluated again. i could very well be a medication she is on. I know she has the UTI again, so it could be something with that. I don't know.

Barb, most definately I will keep you and your mom lifted up in prayer.

heb1976 said:

Oh supposively she has a bracelet as well as a button to push when she needs assistance. Funny thing is that we found them underneath her bed and the aides blaming grandma for taking them off. It is always an excuse with them. No one is held accountable for anything - they pass the blame to someone else. Just like the lens fell out of her glasses the other day and no one knows what happened to them either.

I am thinking of making an anonymous phone call to complain and have them investigated. I can handle my grandma passing because it is her time ... but I will not accept her passing because of someone's incompetence. I do not care how short handed they are. That is there job and it is their responsibility. If they cannot do there job right - then find another one for cripes sake.

Sorry ... just really upset!

edited to add : she is seeing the doctor next week and mom is having everything re-evaluated again. i could very well be a medication she is on. I know she has the UTI again, so it could be something with that. I don't know.

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Heather you have every right to be upset and you summed up how I feel about my mom. I know she is going to die one of these days but I don't want it to be from someones intentional or negligent acts.

However, I am puzzled about how she can be hypoglycemic and have a uti at the same time. Whenever my mom has a uti, her sugar climbs high, it doesn't drop so low like your grandmas. It makes no sense to me. I am glad she is seeing the doctor. I hope that he ordered her blood to be tested at least 3 times a day.

If you or your mom needs me for whatever reason, you know where to find me. I can meet you anywhere as long as it doesn't conflict with my own or my mom's dr appts.

Your mom is doing all the right things. I share in your frustration. Try to be there for her as best you can. Let her vent, too.
Hugs, Susan

Just wanted to let you know you are still in my thoughts and prayers. Sounds like a rough time of it for both of you. God Bless.

St. Guadelupe is thought to be Mary herself. I bought a painting of her to comfort one of my friends. May she bring you comfort as well.

Just wanted to update. I am having hard time typing this out so if it doesn't make sense I apologise. I went up there this afternoon - specifically during her lunch. She was sleeping in the recliner and not at the table to eat. I walked over to her and she was very sweaty and clammy. I got pissed, because this is the way my dad found her yesterday. The aide has the hospice nurse come over to me and explained to me that her blood sugar this morning was 47. They had just taken it and it was 88. She had eaten some breakfast and was given a glucerna which she spit up. The hospice nurse and I gave her some juice and then I was able to get her to drink 1.2 a bottle of the glucerna. She was not very responsive, sweating perfussively. The hospice nurse said that she had no fever and that everything looked to be ok. They really do not know what is causing her blood sugar to be so low.

The hospice nurse said that their plan is to take her off the insulin completely. They will try this for 3 days while monitoring her. They said her body is changing so rapidly, this is the only think that seems logical. It could be that the insulin is causing this or it could be an infection. She hugged me and told me that in her opinion she is declining. There is a chance she could bounce back, but they do not know.

I left and went to my parents (this was around 1:30) and we all talked. Dad called up there to see how she was doing. This was around 4. They said that she was awake, but didn't want to eat anything. They checked her blood sugar and it was 47. They weren't doing anything for her other then just letting her sit there so mom, dad, and my brother followed. I wanted to go, but my son had a school concert that I needed to be there for.

I was updated around 5 that she was up, alert and lucid and mom was feeding her some goulash. I do not know what the next couple of days are going to entail. If you do not see mom or I on here much, it is because we are with her. Please keep praying. If she does decide it is her time to go, we want her to go peacefully.

I'll keep you all in my thoughts. Don't forget to take care of YOU and your mom too!!

Heather, you have my prayers. I have been worried all day because neither of you were around. You have been so wonderful to be there and try to help your grandma. Hang in there! I hope that your mom reached the ombudsman that I suggested and that they prove to be helpful.
Best always, Susan

We will keep you in our thoughts as well, it must be frustrating dealing with them and I hope it gets better soon.

Just wanted to send more love and prayers your way!