OT: My Dad

[TSanders]

Just got back from the hospital.

Dad is doing well, and has only a couple final follow up tests to be run. His moral is very high, we watched some Orange County Choppers and had a good time. About 75% of all the wires, hooked up to him are off now, and hes glad about that. Looks like he may be needed a pacemaker, but it looks promising for his recovery.

If you have time to read, Id like to vent, about what I think was a HORRIBLE mishandling of his situation. He drove himself to the hospitial, when he knew he was having a heart attack. Got there around 2AM, tells the ER nurse at the counter that he was having a heart attack, so they call the doctors, and get to work on him, right? No. Hes asked to get his insurance card and drivers license, then fill out a mess of paper work. Completes the paperwork, and is asked to have a seat in the waiting room. An hour later, still in the waiting room, and in great pain, he asks the nurse if she is hoping to see him die in front of her. She says, "Im sorry, were doing the best we can, but are short handed". About 2 hours later, still hasnt been admitted. Gets in his truck and drives to another hospital in town. Goes through some more waiting. Then is processed, and its decided he needs to be at the hospital he had left earlier (they specialize in Cardiac Care). So by ambulance hes taken back the the first hospital, and isnt actually admitted to begin SOP until about 6AM. 4 hours of dead time, whie my dad is having a heart attack. Pretty freakin pathetic. Im frustrated about that, and just wanted to vent.

 

[bovinehost]

I'm glad to hear he's doing well, which is the main thing.

Secondarily, I'd burn the effin' place DOWN if that happened to one of my family members. You need to write some letters, call some TV stations, that sort of thing.

Completely WTF.

But the main thing is that he's recovering.

Glad to hear it, my man.

Jack

 

[koogie2k]

The good thing is....he's doing okay..

I understand your frustration with the hospital. No time for me to get into it, but I have had a few stays at the hospital and they are not pleasant.

Hope all is well with you and your family.

 

[OldSchool Noob]

Excellent!!!

Dad is doing well ... it looks promising for his recovery.

Trav -

That's GREAT news! It's a bummer about all of the rigamarole but the important thing is that his prognosis is good!

 

[midopa]

Good to hear your dad is on the way to recovery! Bad to hear the bull he had to go through all the while having a heart attack.

Still sendin' best wishes and good vibes your way, mang.

 

[shamus63]

What a load of sh*t on the part of the hospital!

Your dad has got to be a pretty tough guy to be able to endure all that extra stress in the middle of a heart attack; glad he's doing better!

 

[Mobay45]

Travis, it's horrible the way ERs are run now days. But let this be a lesson to everyone that reads this.

If you are having a heart attack or you think you might be having a heart attack, call 911. Help arrives faster than you can get it on your own and you become a priority at the hospital. When you come in on a stretcher, they pay a lot more attention to you than when you walk in on your own (unless blood is pouring from some part of you.). There are drugs that they can administer to heart attack and stroke victims now that, if they are given in a certain time frame, can considerably reduce the damage caused by either of these.

And I'm very happy and relieved that his recovery seems to be progressing well. Keep us informed. We do care.

 

[tkarter]

Very glad to hear your father is doing okay Travis. There is no good excuse for what happened at the hospitals.

tk

 

[Bill]

Thanks for the update! I'm glad he's doing much better. There's no excuse for what the hospital put him through!

 

[AnthonyD]

Travis - glad to hear your Dad is doing better. Experience tells me having lot's of loved ones around helps, sort of a collective strength that everyone benefits from.

The hospital experience you describe is enough to make anyone angry - thankfully the story has a happier ending.

Larry gives good advice, and in fact, we've used that same approach in the past to ensure there is minimal delay in getting the proper attention.

 

[Randracula]

That's great news Travis! I'm glad he is doing better, the hospital thing sucks. My wife works at a hospital and I know how bad they can be . Complain to whoever you can about this.IMO they should be picking up the entire bill for your dads stay as some of his complications could have been caused by their mishandling of the situation. Stay strong and take care, Randy

 

[cheezewiz]

Hey Trav. Best luck to your dad man. I'm glad to hear he should be OK. The week after my 40th birthday, I had a heart attack scare. I ended up getting transferred to a hospital an hour away, having a cardiac cath, etc, but everything turned out OK. It's a very scary time, and I can assure you, your dad needs your support a ton right now. As far as the other hospital, what Jack said. I'd scream unti I was SURE someone heard.

 

[Dees]

Glad to hear the good news!
On the other hand, what happened is terrible! Some hospitals could use some decent personnel! You could seriously sue the hospital for souch things (I don't say you should, it isn't of course as simple as that).

 

[UKFIN]

Glad your father is doing well

Emergency rooms are by law obliged to treat patients wether they carry insurance or not

In Florida emergency rooms it is illegal by law to ask for insurance cards/details until you have recieved a medical screening , i.e you are seen by a doctor .

You may want to write to THE JOINT COMMISSION FOR HEALTH CARE ADMINISTRATION , as it appears your fathers treatment did not meet the national standards/ pathways for chest pain patients . Patients presenting with chest pains should be given asprin on arrival if not taken within 24hrs and an EKG performed within 5 mins .

Just check the standards for your state but definately follow up as time is of the essence when your having chest pain

Stll all the best , hope your father is home soon

 

[JB1]

Great news Travis.

Echo all about the hospital thing here. Ours are different but can be as bad sometimes.

Hope your Pa is enjoying the Teutl's!

All the best

 

[TSanders]

Glad your father is doing well

Emergency rooms are by law obliged to treat patients wether they carry insurance or not

In Florida emergency rooms it is illegal by law to ask for insurance cards/details until you have recieved a medical screening , i.e you are seen by a doctor .

You may want to write to THE JOINT COMMISSION FOR HEALTH CARE ADMINISTRATION , as it appears your fathers treatment did not meet the national standards/ pathways for chest pain patients . Patients presenting with chest pains should be given asprin on arrival if not taken within 24hrs and an EKG performed within 5 mins .

Just check the standards for your state but definately follow up as time is of the essence when your having chest pain

Stll all the best , hope your father is home soon

PM sent.

 

[Dr. Nick]

Glad everything is a little better for you and your family Travis. That's all that really matters!

As an aside, in my past life, I used to have to interact quite frequently with all areas of the medical establishment (Dr.s, their staff, hospitals, insurance companies, HMOs, whatever) and I can honestly say that our medical system in the US is in dire need of top to bottom reform (with no offense to the many fine, hardworking people in the medical field who ARE working to save lives).

Just my $0.02.

Again, glad to hear your dad is doing better! Take care.

 

[UKFIN]

Travis

I replied to the PM . Let me know if I can help you further

 

[bovinehost]

I am constantly amazed at the wealth of knowledge our members possess.

God bless you all, lads. You're a good bunch.

Jack

 

[NorM]

At night when I go to sleep I try to remember all the things I'm thankful for before I move on to the things I don't like. Sometimes I get to the things I don't like and and sometimes I fall asleep before I finish being thankful.

I'm thankful that your dad is doing better.

You are right to have feelings.
You are more right to express them.

The ER situation you discribed is F'ed up