My nurse contribution: Visitors - never ever let your toddlers/small children crawl around on, or play on hospital floors. Not in the waiting rooms, patient rooms, not ANywhere.
People think that because its a hospital or clinic the floor must be disinfected but its not true!! Ive seen kids literally dragging themselves on the floor!! 😖 I just cringe!!
Many years ago, my grandfather left AMA. He knew he was about to die and, he said he wouldn't die in a hospital, that he wanted to die at home. He also said, there were too many things at home to take care of before he died. So, when he was given the news, he probably wouldn't last another day or two, he checked himself out. He went home that morning, took care of his garden and a few other things around the house, as well as some paperwork, then around supper time, he said he was going to take a nap. Gave his wife a kiss and hugged her, sat down in his recliner, put on the tv and went to sleep for the last time. He always said, he'd know the time he was going to go.
@@_The_RFG_Club_ thank you but, not really. I respected him for things like that. He knew when he was going to go, and wanted it to be on his terms. He was a good man, and lived a good life. He knew there was no fighting the inevitable.
Yes, advocate for yourself! The doctors almost gave my mom the wrong chemotherapy drug before she had a stem cell transplant. She kept telling them it wasn’t right, it wasn’t the one her oncologist told her she was going to have and they insisted it was. She kept insisting until a nurse who had picked up an extra shift and wasn’t even supposed to be there noticed how nervous and worried she seemed. The nurse asked what was up and my mom explained. The nurse was the one to finally convince the doctors it was wrong. The next day the entire department, including all the heads of it and a bunch of other hospital higher ups appeared in her room begging for forgiveness and for a second chance. My mom said “I literally don’t have a choice. I will die if I don’t have this transplant and no one else anywhere near here will do it.” They were extra extra careful after that and were almost obnoxiously nice to us. Advocate for yourself until they’re forced to believe you!
I’m so sorry that happened I hope your mom is doing better. I’m scared to advocate for myself or others because I’m shy and insecure and I know it’s a big thing but usually it’s like the seniority mindset of doctors that makes me think they should know what they’re doing but I’ll learn from your story to do better in sticking up for myself and others
For me, the few times I've been in the hospital, I've had to advocate for myself regarding blood draws and IV's. First, I've learned to not let just anyone stick me. I'm a hard stick, so I always tell them this and insist that they get the ultrasound tech to do it. Sometimes they try to convince me they can do it themselves, but no, I know my body. Get the machine. The other thing was that one time I was in the hospital for a very bad case of mono. (My tonsils swelled so much, my throat closed up.) They came in my room 3 or 4 times a day to draw blood. And this was before I knew to ask for the ultrasound machine. So each time they stuck me, they would stick me multiple times. I had bruises all over. It was horrible. So finally I got so mad about it, I told them they got to take my blood once a day, no more. Especially since it was mono. There was no real reason they needed my blood.
During my mother's final illness, I had to do some pretty forceful advocating for her. I made sure they understood that she was DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) and I questioned what medications they were giving her. The hospital was sold in the middle of her stay, and they immediately lost access to the computer system they were using. They had to go to paper records which wasn't working well. Another time a couple of years before, I had to insist to a surgeon that yes, my mother needed a few opiate pain killers to take for a few days after the procedure. I told him that my mom had a low pain threshold, and that she wasn't an addict, which she wasn't. I was polite, but I think he realized I was going to make trouble if he didn't prescribe them. I understand that doctors are afraid they'll lose their license if they prescribe opioids, but in this case, I felt she needed them.
Although I 100% the "advocate for yourself" advice, it's also good to keep in mind that you, as a patient, can be wrong too; so for whatever the issue is insist on being shown evidence/proof that the doctors/nurses are correct and you're in the wrong. In the case Allison described I would demand the hospital get a hold of my oncologist to confirm with them and me that they had gotten it right and I was wrong. In other words, it's OK to believe you're right, and to insist on some way of settling the issue; but be willing to admit you're wrong if there's convincing evidence you are. In all matters of factual disputes (in hospital or anywhere else in life) evidence is king.
My law student contribution: Always read the Informed Consent Forms. It is extremely important you understand the procedure and its risks (from the common ones to the rare ones). I cannot stress this enough, read the Informed Consent and ask all the questions you may have before you sign it. No doctor who is worth their salt should refuse to answer your questions; questions are expected and even encouraged.
My law student contribution: Always read the Informed Consent Forms. It is extremely important you understand the procedure and its risks (from the common ones to the rare ones). I cannot stress this enough, read the Informed Consent and ask all the questions you may have before you sign it. No doctor who is worth their salt should refuse to answer your questions; questions are expected and even encouraged.
I remember when I got a colposcopy, they gave me the informed consent papers after the procedure when I was shaking and about to pass out from the pain
Yes yes yes, I almost never see patients at our clinic read the consent form even for riskier procedures. And as much as I feel honored that they trust us to take care of them, I would much rather they read the form.
When my mum was in hospital at the end of her life she was unable to talk about D.N.R. She had talked to us (her children) about it. I had to tell the doctor that she did not want her life prolonged if her heart stoped. They resuscitated her 10 times before I was so upset that I screamed out enough she did not want this. They then rang my other siblings to find out what I said was true. So yes please talk to your doctor about a DO NOT RESUSCITATE order. It will take a lot of stress off your children
Having worked ER registration, I cannot stress enough how important it is. Some people would get upset when I asked if they had a DNR or advanced directive, but I've seen situations exactly like you described. It's super important to have that stuff lined up not just for you, but also for your loved ones. I'm so sorry you had to deal with that. I don't know if this helps, but I can explain what might have contributed to that situation. Part of the problem is the whole liability issue. If they don't have a notarized DNR on file, it can blow up in their face and become a legal issue, as with there being no official documentation, they could be sued over it. Then there's also family members that are trying to get away with something. That's why they had to call your siblings to confirm. We all the time had family members who had medical power of attorney that thought they could override the patient's decisions because they had POA... WHILE the patient was very much conscious and capable of making their own decisions. Then there's family fights and disagreements, people giving the doctors and nurses conflicting information. It's really frustrating to know that a few rotten people end up making all these extra hoops to jump through. It puts extra stress on everybody and can delay care or important end of life decisions like this. Anyway, sorry about the small essay. I'm sorry about your loss, and I hope you're doing well.
Absolutely agreed. My mom's last hospital visit, she was just lucid enough to tell us that she didn't want the breathing tube OR CPR/etc., and my stepdad and I made sure the doctors and nurses were aware of this. They honored it, even without paperwork. Gotta have an advocate who knows what you want when you're in that situation.
In most countries it is best to prepare something in writing. Place it somewhere readily-available to your next of kin and make sure they know about it. (Add something about your preferences regarding organ donations.) Very useful and stress-reducing for the next-of-kin.
Absolutely disgusting behaviour from the staff. I’m so sorry that you had to go through that. Edit: I mean they shouldn’t have done it that many times even without the dnr order it would have been traumatic
I work at primary care and I tell every patient over 65 to do their directive. Hospitals often contact us to get their last official copy (patient is supposed to give us a copy). So many patients don't do them and its frustrating for exactly this reason. I know it is scary to think about end of life but I tell them it's really a gift for their loved ones so the trauma you experienced doesn't happen. I'm so sorry you went through that
“Never insist the doctor is better than the nurse” OH BOY IS THAT THE TRUTH, in my experience, I spent several months in the hospital, and let me tell you... I WAS SO GRATEFUL when the nurses would do things especially dressing changes. Not to say doctors are not essential and wonderful humans for doing what they do, but there’s nothing like a nurse when it comes to bed side manor and calming down a terrified 21-year-old with a ruptured femoral artery. Love your content !!
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OMG yes! I am so grateful for having such great nurses in my intern years, they teach us a lot!!
My friend accidentally cut her arm open while setting up her daughters swing set. The ER doc was super nice and gave great stitches and then bandaged her arm after. The nurse came over to go over discharge paperwork and saw the state of the bandage and flat out said " I love Dr.-------, but let me rebandage that"
It comes from people wanting the best diagnosis. Who does the best diagnosis? The person who knows the most about medical stuff in general, meaning the doctor. I'm a bit of an exponent of that issue myself, as my mother was nearly killed by a nurse who saw her with CLEAR symptoms of high blood pressure for a blood pressure test, but instead decided she knew everything, refused to do the test, told my mother to go eat lots of crisps and other salty stuff to increase her blood pressure and sent her home. Anyway, not two weeks later she was in the ICU with a blood pressure of 195/130 on the brink of death and her kidneys are pretty much shot at about 20% capacity left. The kidney specialist commented that if we'd been 1-2 weeks earlier, it's quite likely the kidney function would've been far more intact. So yeah, if you ever meet anyone insisting to see a doctor, it could be me, since I'll do that whenever I detect any signs of medical people of any kind going outside of their expertise or trying to just get rid of us out of either busyness or lazyness. I do by contrast greatly apreciate medical workers being honest about their thought proces. Had a great time despite the pain when I broke two metatarsal bones and dislocated a toe, because two doctors in training couldn't figure it out, a doctor couldn't figure it out, but they admitted that this combination of fractures and dislocation is not something in any manual and they had trouble deciding on a course of action, because every way of taping everything back together also came with a warning label not to do that in case of something else I had. In the end they called in a professor as well, together with another couple of medical students and had two books open as they decided on the best way to tape everything together. The foot never fully recovered and this was a huge bugbear during military service, sports and longer hiking since, but I know for damned sure that everything that could be done for it, was done, because they were honest about their thought proces and limitations. Save the secrecy and "I know best" for the people who lost the genetic lottery and have an IQ where only "I'm wearing a white coat, trust me bro" inspires confidence.
I was admitted once and I remembered that the doctors were trying to draw blood from an artery. I have always had a hard time getting my blood drawn. This time it was really painful for some reason. They failed 4x (1 nurse and 3 doctors) and on the 5th try it was like a senior nurse who nailed it. Thats when I knew, nurses are really superior when it comes to drawing blood
When I was admitted from the ER, I was so dehydrated that they had to get the ambulance paramedic to find a vein. He did it in one shot. Love that guy, because of him I was finally able to get pain meds!
Once when I was getting blood drawn, I can't remember what it was for, but it was the doctor's first time drawing blood, and it took her about 3 tries. She never did get any out, 'cause I passed out the third time and scared the sh*t out of her. Had to go to a nurse, and she got it done in less than 5 minutes.
Imma come clean: one time I was in the hospital for sepsis infection and one of the night time nurses was being extremely rude to me basically saying I was faking my infection symptoms for attention and I simply said "I hope you have a quiet shift sir" Surprise: it wasn't a quiet shift for him
"never be a afraid to advocate for yourself" I feel I have made a thousand videos about this piece of advice. Always talk to your doctor. Always ask for explanation. Show them that you care. Show them that you are getting informed about your condition. It can make all the difference in the world.
I mean, shouldn't that be their basic job, to explain this in the first place? You come in and say you have an issue, that means you care right? To say you have to show them you care is a bit silly. The point of going to a doctor who does so much schooling is so they can explain why you may be feeling that way and why they are treating you, or refer you to a specialist (which is more money out of your pocket by the way) or consult for more information. A lot of people feel scared to ask for a reason because they feel they are talking back to the doctor who is supposed to know more than them. Everyone tells people now not to get advice from the internet, just to listen to your doctor, but now you have to inform yourself and your doctor, which doesn't make sense. Tell your doctor everything, sure, but isn't it up to them to decide what is going on or refer accordingly if it is an actual thing they can't fix? I mean you could get a second opinion, but here in America that cost extra money, so how can we discern which doctor to trust, and now we have to make sure they tell us what they already should be telling us? I know for a fact reviews can't be trusted, and paying hundreds of dollars for a consult or being stuck in a closed network plane due to cost and/or having help from the government prohibits a lot of Americans from doing this. Assuming you are America since this TH-cam channel is about the American health system. I totally understand there are times where it may be necessary but your comment makes it seem as if people have to constantly be worries they are giving the wrong information, yet we are taught to listen to health officials (covid pandemic for example).
Advocating for yourself only goes so far - if they refuse to listen, there is nothing the patient can do. That's firsthand experience from myself and people in my family. It'd be nice if more medical people listened when patients advocate for themselves.
Thank you. I need this reminder. I have trouble verbalizing and with communication, so I'm not good at it. But I've had some traumatic things happen as a result. (I'm diagnosed with autism and social anxiety)
It’s so annoying when you’re in the ER, you know what treatment works best for your condition when it gets to the point of needing to go to the ER, but the doctor refuses to treat you that way even after asking you what treatment works best for you, and then refuses to come back into your room to talk to you about it. So you end up just taking the treatment they’re trying to give you, because you’re desperate for something to help. This happens to me too often, because I have Trigeminal Neuralgia. If it gets to the point of me going to the ER, it’s because my pain is off the charts and nothing I’m prescribed is helping. I’m already prescribed Morphine Extended Release and Dilaudid Immediate Release, if I’m going to the ER, it’s cause my opiates already haven’t helped. The hospital in my moms town found out through trial and error with me, that a bolus of Ketamine is the only thing that always works to end the pain cycle and bring me out of an attack. But none of the hospitals where I live will treat me with it. They won’t even give me IV pain meds beyond Tramadol (which is literally nothing compared to what I already take at home). On Sunday, that’s what happened. The doctor asked what treatment works for me, seemed to agree and walked away, then the nurse came in and said they were giving me Benadryl and Haldol…I asked if I could speak with the dr before being given that, 30 min later they came in to say the doctor said the only other thing he’d give me is Tramadol, I asked again if I could speak to him, returned 20 minutes later saying he was too busy (the ER wasn’t packed at all, there was hardly anyone there…) and that if I’m in that much pain I would just take what they’re giving. And I said okay, because I was in too much pain to wait any longer or to continue to advocate for myself… and it brought my pain down from maxed out on the charts to maybe a 9 and I went home to continue to fight through the pain they didn’t help with. The next day, I ended up back at another ER because I started having strange facial contractions that I literally couldn’t control, pulling my jaw from side to side and making weird faces without being able to stop it. Turned out it was something called “Extrapyramidal Symptoms”, basically a very rare type of allergic reaction to antipsychotics like the Haldol that they gave me at the ER the night before..
Then wisest thing I was ever told in a hospital by a nurse: you come to a hospital to get treated, but you go home to get better. This after I complained about being woken up several times the night by folks checking on me or to do blood draws. She was absolutely right, and made me stop and think about it. I have never complained again about being woken up at the hospital.
If I don't sleep I got very bad headaches (vomit, dizziness, light sensitivity...) so I complained about being woken up several times the night by nurses checking on me and I explained my condition. Because, I will have two problems to face (the one i am at the hospital for and horrible headache)and that isn't make me go better. Please, Let patients time to rest it's important even at hospital.
@@Rachel-qr8kv I don't think nurses come and wake you up in the middle of the night to be annoying. If they're running some tests at specific hours, there's a reason.
We don’t wake you up because we feel like it lol. We do it to make sure we’re taking care of you in the best way possible. You could have a complication in the middle of the night and we wouldn’t know it unless we woke you up for assessment.
I had a seizure and fell off a train platform, and I kept telling the doctors and nurses I was in pain. The doctor actually discharged me at 2 am. I refused to leave, the doctor said he would have security remove me. I waited in the waiting room for an administrator to arrive, explained what happened, and she readmitted me and ordered an MRI. That's when they discovered my pelvis was fractured in front and back. When you have a degenerative musculoskeletal disorder and have a fall, the ER staff should always make sure you can walk unassisted and be able to go to the bathroom before they discharge you. If you can't do either, they should not be discharging you.
exact same thing happened to me. I was in a car accident when I was 2 years old and my parents begged the doctors for almost 3 days straight that something was wrong. They continued to discharge me every single time. I got an MRI and Cat scan and then it showed I had a hairline fracture in my neck.
Similar hospital experiences here too, Doctor’s Mike advice should not be treated as the bible and followed 100%. His advice is assuming everything goes perfectly in his ideal scenario when reality is far from that. Doctors are humans too and some simply became one only for the money, not because they care about their patients and will get lazy at times
Doctor Mike opening fan mail is like watching a child open gifts on Christmas, such a joy to watch! And Bear is so sweet with him, truly makes my heart happy 😃
Doctor Mike opening fan mail is like watching a child open gifts on Christmas, such a joy to watch! And Bear is so sweet with him, truly makes my heart happy 😃
ADVOCATE FOR YOURSELF. I was in hospital after surgery for a collapsed lung, and I was given pain medication. I reacted terribly to this pain medication (e.g. hallucinations, vomiting etc which is incredibly painful with a tube in your chest) so the pain specialist put in my record that I was to not have this drug again. One day later, a nurse came in with pain meds and told me to take them. I asked what it was, and they were like “oh your pain meds”. So I was about to take them when I noticed it looked like the drug I reacted to. After arguing with the nurse and her telling me to stop worrying and take it, she finally consulted another nurse who confirmed my suspicion
Her not telling you what the meds are called is a massive red flag! ... Where I go they always tell you the name of each drug they are giving you. And they try to split them in to separate pots so you can easily leave one for later or refuse a specific one...
My kidneys were removed in 2001. When I was in hospital a few months down the track, the nurse came in with a spec jar. I asked her why, and she said "you can't have your ultrasound until you urinate into the jar." I argued with her for 5 minutes (and ended up angry crying) about how I had no kidneys so I couldn't pee. The nurse left to check and never came back 😁 I received a transplant in 2005.
They once gave me the wrong medication 🙃 I told the nurse that it was different from my usual treatment, she insisted so much I took it at the end. I was sick all night.
What country did this happen in? It sounds like typical NHS England treatment, but at the same time I'm not slating the nurses who are totally understaffed, poor handovers and consultants who see you as a bag of flesh, in my experience. Yet there are some dedicated. caring doctors out there, I've met many but not been treated by many.
"never be a afraid to advocate for yourself or your loved one" Absolutely. 100%. Even with some seemingly trivial issues. My daughter had a stomach infection when she was 1 year old. After arguing with the OOH doctor to get an appointment (kids only ever fall sick at the weekend/holidays) because she was getting worse after a day and a half, we saw a GP. She took one look at my baby and called an ambulance completely unresponsive. She was in PICU for 3 days and it was found that she has beta-ketothiolase deficiency, which is a unicorn-level rare metabolic disorder. Knowing that something wasn't right and fighting for her to be seen saved her life. I will always be 'that mum', but I'll also bring cake for the staff, so I'm not all bad!
You absolutely did the right thing. Parents (in this case, mothers) have a sixth sense when it comes to their children, and this is heightened when they are sick. Do not let any health care practitioner write you off; you know your child better than anyone. I hope your daughter is doing loads better and thriving as we speak. You being 'that mum' is necessary in order to get the type of care that patients need. Keep speaking up and doing what needs to be done. Also, I think you the staff definitely loved that cake. It's a good feeling to be appreciated, I know the staff empathized with you (stress is a constant companion for either party in the health care setting). Take care, and I wish you and your daughter all the best!
When my mom was in the hospital for the last time, I made sure to bring treats for the nurses each day I went in the hopes it would make them pay more attention to her during her stay. It worked.
Something similar happened to my sibling. They were 8 and had atypical symptoms of appendicitis. They had on and off severe stomach pain and would scream. My parents took them to multiple Dr’s offices and multiple trips to the ER. They always sent them home. Finally a ER doctor did an ultrasound and saw her appendix about to rupture. She was rushed to immediate surgery and it burst in the doctors hand. If one of the doctors did a exam, a blood tests they would have seen it earlier. They spent almost a month in the hospital and another 2-3 weeks at home Bedford they could go back to school.
@@shirahime23 They don't always have it unfortunately. My parents knew a couple who had a daughter who complained a lot about headaches but not too much, just regularly. They brushed it off. She had a leucemia and died at the age of ten.
In 2020, I was in the hospital for open-heart bypass surgery. The nurses were absolutely amazing, and I told them such. Nurses are truly the hardest working professionals in medicine. I always thank them. I also showed the same respect for the people who came in to mop the floors. Everyone in that building deserves respect
I feel like the janitorial staff deserves extra respect. A lot of the time, that is the best job they can get, and the pay isn’t super great. They work around everyone, sometimes in really awkward situations, and clean up all sorts of disgusting messes. Yet they are generally some of the most reliable staff.
When I have to go to a hospital I get a strong feeling it's assumed I'm a drug addict or have an eating disorder. You kind of hope for a doctor that can distinguish between those things. But really. How do you get feedback from something like that.
In 2020, I was in the hospital for open-heart bypass surgery. The nurses were absolutely amazing, and I told them such. Nurses are truly the hardest working professionals in medicine. I always thank them. I also showed the same respect for the people who came in to mop the floors. Everyone in that building deserves respect
End of Life Convo is a big one!! I've been a big advocate for palliative care for years and years - I even gave an end-of-life and palliative care presentation at my community college in my early 20s just because I was so passionate about it. Don't be afraid to have these conversations!! My grandmother told me I was the only family member who ever asked her about her wishes when she was 86 years old. There's a reason she made me her Power of Attorney. When she ended up in the hospital for something that seemed routine? Turns out it wasn't -- and it took them a couple of weeks to recognize that! I had to advocate hard for her comfort, but I knew what she was willing to endure and where her stopping point was because I'd talked to her about it. DON'T WAIT TO HAVE THESE CONVERSATIONS.
The IV one is one we get all the time on the ambulance. "I'd rather have a doctor start my IV." Trust me, no no you wouldn't. I start IVs every day in a box bumping down the road at 40 miles an hour. I know doctors who have barely started an IV since med school. Docs are wonderful and they do so much but there are somethings that those of us who do them every day are going to be better at and IVs are one for sure.
Good point! My husband is both a paramedic and ER nurse. He’s told me about doing an IV in an ambulance in traffic. I’m impressed by the skills nurses and EMS workers have.
@@phaedrapage4217Same. It's hard to get an IV in me. The last one I had required a special needle for newborns and went at my thumb. It was the only place they could get it. Forget shingles, this was way more painful. If someone could put an IV in me while a truck drives, and I didn't know it, that's some serious skill. Nurses are amazing. If I know of a nurse who can tend to my really stubborn veins, I'll go out of my way to have them draw it. Even if it's a $50 UBER ride. They will have praises sang about them to everyone.
The IV one is one we get all the time on the ambulance: "I'd rather have a doctor start my IV." Trust me, no no you wouldn't. I start IVs every day in a box bumping down the road at 40 miles an hour. I know doctors who have barely started an IV since med school. Docs are wonderful and they do so much but there are sometimes that those of us who do them every day are going to be better at and IVs are one for sure.
I've shared this before and I will continue sharing it: ALWAYS advocate for yourself! I went to the ER thinking I had appendicitis, doctor asked if I could be pregnant (nope, thank you social distancing), did the abdomen exam, determined I did not have appendicitis and tried to send me home. When I pushed for the CT scan, he said I probably had gastritis, and I probably wouldn't get scanned until 3 or 4 am (it was around 8 pm at that point). I told him I would wait for the scan. Got scanned around 11:30 pm, scan showed I had an abscess in my small intestine. I ended up getting admitted, and further tests and procedures diagnosed me with Crohn's Disease and sepsis. During my follow-up with my PCP, she told me she saw the scan and estimated I was about 48 hours away from medical emergency, and praised me for trusting my body and advocating for myself. (For what it's worth, the ER doctor did apologize for not believing me when he discussed the scan results with me.)
I wish there was a more universal “believe the patient until you can PROVE otherwise” instead of the “it’s probably not a big deal” until you come into the ER with an immediate life threatening situation. Not just at the ER but with all doctors.
@@C1975-t7p I mean, immediate life threatening situations are kind of the entire point of an ER. Anything else should be seen by urgent care or at a doctors office. People will often go to an ER with any medical issue but they can't really do anything for you outside of acute emergencies.
I love how Mike gets to the point, he doesn't take long explaining each number. And your fans brought you some pretty cool stuff, glad that they make you happy
@@SetiKt it's more of "wishing the staff a quiet shift" jinx means the extremely opposite end ends up happening. Sounded like a superstition that mentioning "quiet" is a jinx, which means it will be extremely "loud" and busy, and hectic, and a mess, etc
Around 13 years ago I was brought to the ER from home. I was having a massive GI bleed. After banding it blew out again and they did TIPPS. I lost A LOT of blood I received 12 bags of blood and two bags of platelets. I had worked in the ER and i’ve never seen anyone throw up so much blood before. So this did scare me about five or six days after the event I was starting to eat, but was so weak that I couldn’t yet walk at all much less take care of myself at home. The G.I. doctor wanted to send me straight from the ICU to home even though I couldn’t walk she said she needed the bed. I really couldn’t believe this. The other GI doctor stepped back and mouthed to me “I’ll be back” Thank God he fixed everything. PT got sent to me and evaluated me. I got to stay about 48 more hours . I got stronger and able to go up a flight of stairs. This all surprised me. This was at a top hospital in Boston. Thank you Dr Field Willingham. We miss you much ❤
I'm so glad I live in a country where you don't have to worry about money when you are in a medical emergency. My mother had an air ambulance literally across country - a flight that lasted for hours, with her own nurse to care for her, ambulance ready to take her to her doorstep, painkillers and physiotherapy later for the grand ol' price of 0$. 🇧🇻🇧🇻🇧🇻
That is how it should be. We have trillions of dollars and great economy. Everyone should pay little for national health care 💯💯,. It's not communism or socialism. I am from india. Government having some control over medicines and equipment pricing is necessary so that companies don't make billions while people are in debt and die. Check U.S on other side. It's horrible and mind-boggling.
After my surgeon sent me home with a punctured colon, I ended up back in the hospital with sepsis. Had emergency surgery and spent 2 months in the hospital. Let me tell you, patience, manners, being friendly, and saying please and thank you go a LONG way with all staff.
100% on advocating for yourself and your family/friends. I remember a few years ago my uncle was dying in hospital and needed to have a scan done, and was told he could have nothing to eat or drink until the scan. I arrived after his lunch had and he was so hungry and thirsty, but waited patiently. A junior nurse came in to give him medicine, and left before my uncle took it, and I stopped my uncle from taking it. Chasing the nurse down I asked if my uncle could have the medicine if he wasn’t allowed to have anything to eat or drink, and after checking with another nurse, it turns out that because he had lunch delivered it was assumed he had eaten and got knocked back on the wait list. I told them he hadn’t had anything waiting for the scan, and provided he didn’t take the medicine (he didn’t) he was bumped up the list. If I hadn’t stopped and talked on my uncle’s behalf, I hate to think of how long he would’ve waited to be seen…
Just FYI, some meds are OK take if NPO ( nothing by mouth). Pt can have orders that say NPO except for meds, because some of those meds are important and should be missed due to a potential scan
Been there done that. I was diabetic while pregnant and after my daughter was born I had to be NPO to get my tubes tied. She was born after midnight and I was scheduled for surgery at 7 am so they wouldn't even let me have water after giving birth. Fine, let's just get this done. Except the surgeon was late and decided to get his morning clinic out of the way first. Then that ran late too. He visited me on his lunch break to explain the delay and had the nerve to eat in front of me. I don't begrudge a busy doctor his lunch, but with the smell of chicken swamping the room, I was hard pressed not to snatch it from him. I hadn't had anything to eat or drink since noon the previous day, and was breast feeding my newborn. The nursery expressed concern that my daughter's blood sugar was low and they couldn't figure out why. Duh, my sugar is low too; I wonder why! Finally at 5:30 pm they wheeled me to surgery, where the anesthetist and the rest of the team were already half an hour into overtime and...the surgeon calls to say he's running later than planned. My last conscious memory is of the anesthetist cursing at the doctor. I ended up back in my room after 9 pm. The cafeteria was closed, so the nurses put together a meal from the vending machines--a turkey sandwich, jello, cookies, pudding, and a cola. For a diabetic. Then they had the nerve to be surprised when my sugar went way up. Fed my baby again, and the nursery reported with surprise that her blood sugar also went up. I just wanted to scream in frustration at the lack of understanding something as common as diabetes.
Also speak up when you enter into an emergency room if you don't feel right. I went into the ER due to a bad toe infection. But for the past couple of days I had a bad pain in my left shoulder blade. They triaged me and I did tell them about the pain but they were incredibly busy. I waited there for over three hours and I kept feeling worse but I figured I should just go home because I didn't want to be a bother. Just as I was about to walk out they called me back. When they listened to my chest they realized I was having a heart attack. They placed three stents that day. I wouldn't have lived if I had went home.
Advocating for loved ones is a must. Just last year I had to actively fight with a doctor about not discharging my father too early from his knee replacement. He didn't react well to the nerve block, so what was supposed to be pretty painless was agony for him. I had to raise my voice and tell them there was no way in hell I could get him into the house in his condition. He couldn't stand, and had anesthesia complications that ended up keeping him for a week. Only other time we had to aggressively advocate was for my grandmother. Long story short she had the extremely rare side effect of Cipro that caused her to have psychotic episodes including aggression and 24/7 hallucinations. The doctors tried to ship her off to an insane asylum, but we did research into it and found out it was a known complication. Forced the doctor to take her off it, and 48 hours later she was back to her old self with no memory of the week-long psychotic episode. That doctor avoided us like the dang plague!
@Gail Asprey It was really scary! I was only a kid (10ish) at the time and it was 20 years ago, but it made me really worry about any medication that had psychological side effects listed even if it's very rare. And more likely to question a doctor when I have my own theories/concerns. Also, interesting tidbit - pretty sure Cipro and related drugs were black labeled then taken off the market for those severe but rare side effects
Went into the ER for Hepatic Encephalopathy. Woke up from an induced coma and was in the hospital for two weeks. Well they discharged me but that day I wasn't feeling good. I couldn't honestly pin point it but I just knew my body wasn't right. Two days later I go in because I haven't used the bathroom and I was incredibly thirsty. Turns out my kidneys were failing the entire time I was in the hospital- from the combination of HE, INDUCED, and the fact they kept putting off a paracentesis which I desperately needed. Maybe if I spoke up sooner I would still have my kidneys. Back then i just thought I was feeling that way due to me dying feom my liver and being in bed all day.
I was caregiver for my mom and one of the biggest headaches was keeping track of her meds as they would change often. So being the computer nerd I am I created a spreadsheet with my mom's info, the date the list was updated, contacts in an emergency, allergic reactions, list of medicines showing generic and commercial names, dosage, how many times a day, when she started on the medication, who prescribed it and for what, and OTC (over the counter meds, vitamins, etc). I'd bring a copy along to every doctor appointment, urgent care visit, ER visit, and I made a lot of nurses and doctors very happy it seems by having all of that in one place and easy to read. I also uploaded it to cloud storage so if I didn't happen to have a printout with me I could get online and show it to the doctor or nurse.
I keep one for myself as well. All of my diagnoses, what year I was diagnosed, all meds and times taken, all allergies, all surgery history, all doctors and specialists I see including their office numbers. So many health care workers have thanked me for providing this, I wish all chronically ill people would do this for themselves and their caregivers.
It's great that you did that but really sad that you have to do this. No person without medical training should be expected to keep track of an elderly persons medications. Might be regional differences but that would be her GPs job where I live.
@@iz2333 When someone is seeing 5 or 6 different doctors mistakes can happen if the patient (or caregiver) doesn't keep up with what medications are being taken.
Love the "end of life" suggestion. My mom recently passed, but fortunately, she'd seen an attorney and her end-of-life instructions written down in a folder. We were able to find everything we need and pass it on to her medical staff. (She basically had a DNR and the hospital staff respected it.) Made things so much easier for her and for us.
I'm so sorry for your loss. I'm glad that at least your family did not have to worry about what to do. How thoughtful of your mother! In May, my mother went into the hospital, it looked real bad for a few weeks, and we had to have this conversion. It was rough for us kids, but thankfully she had pre-planned a lot of the medical stuff. She recovered enough to come home, and now she and my father are planning their end-of-life finances. Thoughtful parents like that make the grief less stressful. We need to grieve our loss, not worry about legalities.
The prescription segment is very true. My grandpa had been admitted to the ER when we had call paramedics. His eyes rolled into the back of his head. It occurred from his medications. The ER doctor in charge that night was irritated at his physician for not double checking with a solid follow up. That ER doctor didn’t mean to be irritated, he just wished all primary doctors would do a 100% follow up instead of going with partial insight from the patient and ask family members for their observation when they tag along to help them. The end of life is also a must for discussion. It helped a lot with my grandpa, thankfully he’s still here. He said DNR/no cpr. It was Tough to deal with. I didn’t get angry, but he’s been tough as nails for as long as I can remember. It was seeing how frail he’s become that bothered me after losing my grandma and aunt. I came to the conclusion that they do wish to be pain again, so we must ensure their wishes are carried out no matter how bad it hurts.
One of my dad's coworker died because he left the hospital against the doctors' advice. Dude was super super workaholic and had a heart attack in the office, was taken to a hospital, and when he started feeling better he insisted that he had to back to work. Literally everyone told him it's a bad idea, he wanted to go anyway and iirc he had a second heart attack on the way there and died.
Dude was super super smooth brain is what he was. Imagine being such a slave to your work hours that you force yourself to death cause you were too desperate to get back to earning money for your boss wowzers. 🤦♂️
One time, my mom and sister took our father to the hospital because he was in pain and vomiting (I wasn't there so I am not sure exactly what other things were going on). When they got him to the hospital a staff member said he was obviously just too drunk because he was vomiting and couldn't stand on his own and told us to wait for him to be seen. My mom and sister had to make a scene just to get attention because they knew he had not had anything to drink but the staff did not believe them. Luckily they managed to get someone's attention and he got in. Turns out it was a brain aneurysm. Also we were lucky that he survived it. I know hospital staff are busy people with lots of people to take care of, but to just disregard someone because you think the symptoms they are showing makes them look drunk even when people said they are not, is not right.
I will never trust a doctor or nurse or anybody that can diagnose someone just by looking for 5 seconds at various obvious-visual cues. That's like me telling you that your car's engine dun work well just cuz I smell burnt rubber, there's a damage to the car and it has issues starting. It can literally as well be the battery, the fuel, etc. etc. instead.
Patient contribution: Don’t get mad when you hear that person at 3am screaming like a wild hyena. They are most likely in unimaginable pain or discomfort. Imagine how you’d feel in that position, knowing people are getting angry for something you can’t control…It sucks that it keeps you up, but you’re not the only one there with medical problems.
when i was in hospital like two years ago when i was 13 or sum, there was an about nine- year old kid in one of the rooms next to me who was crying very loudly. The nurse explained to me that the kid had a broken leg and wasnt allowed to move for days, laying in a very uncomfortable position. And even though i couldnt sleep, i felt bad for them and didnt complain. Cant imagine the pain and discomfort that poor kid had to go through :(
I never got yelled at by fellow patients, but I've often (!) been told by doctors "I know you're in pain, but please don't scream. Patients are trying to sleep". Like... yo? You know I'm in a huge amount of pain (even during kidney stones that needed surgery I was told this!), and still you have the nerve to tell me this? 🤨
@@ChibiYotsuba everyone is in pain int the hospital. the doctors need to comfort other patients too dude. he is not wrong, you are not wrong too but it is common sense. everyone is in hospital, not some hotel.
@@ChibiYotsuba When I had surgery to get 6 inches of my intestines removed, I was in a room next to a kid who had some kind of surgery as well. He was also clearly mentally disabled, but nevertheless, he was in pain. Every night he’d start yelling at the top of his lungs. Even though I knew he was in pain, the doctors and nurses always said “Calm down, don’t scream! People are trying to get their rest.” And at first I was like, “Dude? He’s obviously in pain here.” And then after I myself had started feeling my surgery more, I realized how important sleep is in the recovery process. It’s annoying being told that, but to an extent I can understand. I was in the hospital for over 7 days due to complications. And I barely got any sleep. (Sorry for the paragraph)
Dude, them stickers are AMAZING! My tip: DO NOT STAND in front of an elevator door. You never know if a coding patient needs to get out. I don't know how many times I've been in the employee elevator (I understand visitors don't get this) and, when the doors open, I am face to face with someone trying to get in meaning I can't get out. C'mon people!
4:45 My mom has been a registered nurse for 25 years, before becoming an RN, she worked as a traveling phlebotomist, collecting blood for testing from patients at home. She knows how to handle needles. A few years back, a young doctor got angry at her for not being able to draw a patients blood, so my mom told the doctor to take the blood themself. The doctor barely knew the process of taking blood to begin with and ended up flustered, not able to do it.
That doctor is crazy! I have always had most luck with nurses who were older drawing my blood, or just ones who have worked a good amount of years. I have dealt with multiple jabs and bruises all around, and I do not mind AT ALL, I can take the slight pain and don't care about the bruising. I just look away because the sight of blood or poking me makes me dizzy, but it does not hurt bad of course. But I have noticed a difference. I had two doctors, one who was younger but still in his 40s and one who was in his 60s both not be able to hit a vein. These are the docs who tried. Most experienced nurses have been able to (and a young looking lady from Quest got it right on the spot).
I could see why the dr would be unamused by not being able to get it done when thats primarily your job but ami guess the person must have bled out allot or had a severe water shortage for it to be that difficult for a specialist and that would make it understandable
The point about leaving against medical advice is absolutely spot on! I was admitted a few years ago with a cat bite that had gone right through my hand. I had had it cleaned, a good dose of antibiotics and a tetanus shot but they wanted to keep me in anyway with my hand strapped above my head. However, I decided I couldn't be bothered to hang around all night and it was silly keeping me in for a cat bite - I felt like I was taking up a much needed bed, so I discharged myself. Within 12 hrs I was re-admitted with sepsis and needed adrenaline. Had I stayed, all of that could have been headed off in advance and I wouldn't have needed to stay as long as I did. Ultimately, my poor decision almost cost me my life and cost the already crippled NHS far more money than it should have.
@@alejandromedrano7986 my last cat bit the vet right through the bite protection glove. After that I was only allowed to bring her in a special cage that allowed them to push her to one side, so they could sedate her without danger to themselves My cat was a traumatised cat who was rescued from an animal abuse situation, and she was terrified of strangers and unfamiliar places. I only went to the vet if it was necessary and let them do all other checks and vaccines while she was under anesthesia.
As a nurse working in a hospital, I can verify pretty much all the points in here. When it comes to jewelry, our hospital has a locked box next to each bed and only nurse has a key. Even still, we are very careful and ask patients to pass jewelry and valuables to relatives so they would be more secure. I would also add a point "Do not rush the staff for whatever reason." I see many patients and relatives trying rush medications, treatments and scans immediadly while the staff is trying to sort things out with the best of their abilities. We are all doing our best and sometimes waiting sucks and there's not a single day when I don't apologize for the wait time especially if there's an emergency going on in another room. It's alright to remind but wrong to demand instant service.
the only time i’ve ever wanted to rush a nurse was to get more sick bowls when i had appendicitis, because i was GOING to throw up, and didn’t want to create a harder job by puking on the floor. however, i felt too bad and like there was probably someone in a worse state, so i tried not to puke. i…completely failed and felt awful
Just wanna say thank you for what you do daily at work. You deal with the worst and sickest of us and usually get no thanks or respect (or not enough). Our medical systems would crumble in minutes without you all and people need to know that. Sorry for the novel, I just have unending respect for what you do 💜
I had to calm my mom down when it took the ER staff over an hour to get me an prescription. I knew they were short staff, and it didn't help that it was during their shift change.
My only time at the ER had a total wait time of 7 hours (with a few 10-15 minute examinations in between). I only heard 3 hours in they had a major highway accident coming in during that time, with a second one later. I was cold, in pain and tired, but I understood I wasn't a priority at the time and they were doing their darnest to help everyone.
When i had my C-section, they discharged me in just under 24 hours and i wasn't ready at all. Despite not being able to walk without help and just generally not feeling good, they insisted i was fine. I was rushed in 13 hours later with an infection. I knew i wasn't ready and i was treated like an inconvenience.
I worked as a kennel attendant in a vet and the “don’t say quiet” rule was followed. My coworker came in during my shift and asked how the morning was. I just responded, “I don’t wanna jinx it.” I left a few hours later and had the weekend off so hopefully a bullet was dodged
I work in a nursery and someone once dared say "Have a quiet lunch" when it was my turn to watch over the children during lunchtime. I don't think those kids have ever misbehaved more than they did that day
To add to the rule of lieing and asking questions if there is ANY drug abuse history in your life you should disclose that There was a man who was addicted to heroin Over 30 years before getting injured and because he didn't tell them he was given medication that restarted his addiction and slowly ruined his life
Hey Mike, I got to "Dont bring medicine from home" and laughed because I was getting really sick in the hospital when I went in for stomach issues (ending up getting a Cholecystectomy done) but I was forced to stay in the hospital another night because the nurses/doctors kept screwing up my insulin intake. They were giving me something crazy like .5 units an hour when in regality I needed roughly 2.5 units an hour. so my blood sugar went skyhigh and they wouldnt lower it. They Delayed my surgery by a day and my parents and I signed documents to allow myself to use my own medical device.
Hectic. Messing up your blood glucose levels just before an operation! In cases like yours or with some chronic medication, I feel it might be better to have your own meds with you.
One time I went in for a Thrombectomy (thanks PILL for making my ArterioVenous fistula need 3 Thrombectomies one after another), and the Anesthetist asked me if it was ok to give me Morphine during surgery, even when my notes clearly highlight (on a fluro sticker no less) that I have a 'MORPHINE ALLERGY.' Obviously I refused.
I hate to break it to you, SOME hospitals will do it on PURPOSE. I have see patients say I'm supposed to be on 2 beta blockers, _____&______, and the nurses and doctors ignore them, give them the carbon copy protocol they give everyone else, won't allow the patients regular Dr to intervene because he is "out of network" and after 4 ADDITIONAL unnecessary days of being in the hospital, they finally decided to listen to the patient, Then vital signs become normal, everything is going well, and the patient is discharged the next day! I've also seen it with glucose and metformin, the hospital changes the usual meds the patient has been on for years and suddenly, blood sugar is so high, they end up giving them D50!! Again, their doctor cannot intervene because he is out of network, or is not on their payroll, and they ignore the patients constantly telling them. I say, bring your own meds, if they try to change anything that is working well for you just so they can make $$$, sign your self out AMA, and find another hospital.
Here's a fun one: I was on hefty pain meds for multiple chronic issues for years. When I went to hospital for severe pancreatitis and cholecystectomy, the surgeon of all people decided to abruptly discontinue the meds I was on and give me a completely different medication for pain. No reason (I asked), no consulting with my prescribing doctor, he just liked the other medication better. WTH? Not only was this jarring for my body and my pain, the other medication didn't work half as well at a time when pancreatitis dramatically added to my pain levels. Thankfully the internist listened to me when he did rounds and switched me back. I have seen staff make mistakes, make flatly stupid decisions before, but that one takes the cake.
Funnily enough, a patient with a medical issue they regularly know how to deal with, knows more than their doctors... well it's not really that strange when you think about it.
The phlebotomists are usually the very best people to do blood draws. It’s literally what they do all day long. I was in ICU for Diabetic Ketoacidosis, and they were having to draw my blood every two hours from my hand. This is the most painful spot to do it, but these technicians were phenomenal. The nurses that started my IV’s were fanstastic, too. They are the ones that take primary care of you, they are the ones that really know what’s going on. I was there three days, and I think I saw the docs about three or four times once I was admitted. The nurses were there constantly! They really are fantastic, and don’t get nearly enough credit!
Always ADVOCATE! As someone with multiple chronic illnesses, unfortunately I spend a lot of time in hospital for often weeks at a time, multiple times per year. Not only do I myself try my best to keep track of my condition, diet, medication, treatment and recovery, I also ALWAYS have a designated family member keeping track too. This is SO IMPORTANT. Sometimes we aren’t strong enough to monitor everything happening around us, which is why having a second person following things is so useful. Prime example… I have a penicillin allergy and was once given a drug containing it accidentally. If my sister hadn’t been there to stop the insistent nurse from hanging the medication refill, my allergic reaction would no doubt have been a lot worse.
About leaving early: What if they discharge people before it is safe to do so? I was once in urgent care and extremely disoriented, they told me they gave me some sort of pain reliever or something I think, which made me dizzy too. My memory is really hazy because of how out of it I was, I just remember them asking if I felt better, I told them I was dizzy, and next thing I remember I was somehow waking up at home, but I have no recollection of how I got there. I was clearly in no state to be discharged and shudder to think what could have happened or even did happen in that blank space between telling the hospital I felt worse and arriving home. I have heard many similar stories from others in my area of being discharged earlier than safe for a variety of reasons, be they disorented and alone, or physically impaired and unable to get themselves home, or at risk of harming themselves or others, etc. (SW Ontario). Thoughts on this kind of thing happening?
I'm not sure how it is elsewhere, but we are not permitted to physically restrain anyone. Even if they are a risk to themselves or others, we gave to call I the police. We had someone brought up under an EEA and the police asked what would happen if they tried to leave, our answer was we call the police and they follow them up. We've had people essentially forced to self discharge with family or partners under less than ideal circumstances. All we can do is document what has occurred.
@@deconstructor3582 You seem to have missed my point. They discharged me, despite my needing medical care. I should not have gone home as early as did, that was a decision the hospital made while I was unable to make decisions. @Heather Garnham I did not mention anyone being physically restrained, what I am referring to is the hospital discharging people who are in no state to care for themselves, into nobody's care, including people who are at risk of harming themselves or others.
@@Maggie.The.Unicorn I hear what you're saying. It seems like in this video that Dr. Mike is saying that doctors will not discharge you until it's safe, but you're right, the reality is that sometimes doctors try to discharge patients before it's actually safe for them to go (that happened to my sister not long ago). The way I see it is that safety is key, no matter which "side" you're on (patient or provider).
@@heathergarnham9555 especially being in canada... doctors don't seem to care as much because they aren't making money like the states. I go to the clinic and within 2 minutes I'm being offered a prescription for something I probably don't need 🙃
6:04 This one rings so true to me. I'm usually staunchly opposed to going against someone I see as an authority figure (aka every staff member in an ER, etc). I had to take my mom to the ER once, she was in such incredible pain and they had her sitting in this little chair and going through this long process. She couldn't even hold still to get an accurate blood pressure reading, and the nurse was incredibly insensitive and started scolding my mom. Oh boy did my protective instincts come out 😅 I wasn't rude to the nurse, but I was firm and spoke louder and clearer and basically told her to give my poor mom space and be more sympathetic. Turns out my mom was suffering from pancreatitus caused by gallstones/a stone stuck in her bile duct. I've been told (and seen in my mom) it's one of the most painful things you can experience.
Oh god yes that was one of the worst pains I've ever been in. I got it a couple months after delivering my son. The pain got so bad that I couldn't even sit in the van we had and needed an ambulance to get me. Unfortunately the men in there were so rude and refused to listen to how lying down flat was incredibly painful, strapped my arms in to prevent me from sitting up, and yelled at me for screaming because the pain kept increasing the longer I was strapped in the ambulance. Once I got to one of the furthest hospitals from where we lived I was admitted, asked questions, and the next thing I knew I was out. They told me I had pancreatitis and my gallbladder made a stone that sat perfectly at the entrance of my intestines and the bile back-up and swollen pancreas was what was causing my pain. I'm still pissed at those ambulance people and annoyed that the doctors never warned me that my gallbladder removal would result in IBS (and therefore causing me years of never understanding why food caused so much pain) but I'm also glad that I hopefully will never have to go through that pain again. God bless your mother for being alive and well through that. Hopefully her life has gotten better since then.
I'm glad you were there! I don't understand how someone can go into that professional not have compassion. I understand burnout and "having a bad day" but when people go to the ER they are often frightened. The staff have to be level headed about it.
2:27 i’ve actually done this before for a stray cat because the dumpsters were about to be emptied.. she’s happy and healthy now, best cat i’ve ever had
as an EMT, I actually do advise patients to take their medications with them to the hospital, particularly if they take multiple medications and can’t possibly remember all the names and dosages. it helps so that the ER staff will easily have that full list of medications. of course, it would be on the ER staff to let any receiving providers know during a future handoff to avoid any double dosing or drug interactions.
At one point I was having a prescription medication compounded into a specific dose for me. I spent the night in hospital and told the nurse what I took, and explained they were compounded. She told the doctor on the phone and Dr didn’t believe her/me because the medication doesn’t come in that dose (… that’s the point of compounding). when my husband returned with my medication I was able to show her and she went and either showed or phoned the doctor to prove that I was right. Ridiculous.
My Mom always kept an updated medication list in her purse, taped to the inside of the door where her meds were kept along with an extra copy or two (there were times she would only be home for maybe 3 or 4 days before we'd have to call an ambulance again.) This made sure that she always had one for EMTs when an emergency happened.
My sister had to take a lot of meds. At first she didn't have them listed anywhere, and I told her we need to make some lists. It's important for the person taking them as well as emergencies. The times my sister was picked up to go to the hospital, I always had to give them all of her prescription meds & supplements to make note of before they left, and I always took the actual bags of meds with me when I followed them or went as soon as I could later to give to the nurses to double check they 1. Had all the meds & dosages correct & 2. Use what we had so that she didn't have to pay exorbitant hospital/insurance costs per pill & 3. Not be sent home with the same medicines that cost 10x more (that's only if they would, sometimes they "aren't allowed with their hospital policy"). It also gave me her meds in my purse or the list she kept with them (if they took them to use) so that when I visited I could double check with the nurses that were doing the dispensing that they were all being given still & see what had been added by the doctors, if they hadn't told me already (especially when I was her signed medical liaison for if/when she wasn't able to make decisions. I also advocated for her in telling the nurses & doctors how badly she felt when she didn't have certain meds at certain times or with/without at least a snack. Sometimes nurses won't know these things & they give the meds at diff times or without at least a snack & your loved one might vomit or at least get super nauseous & then they don't know it's not an allergic reaction or new symptom but just how your loved one's body responds to certain meds (especially those they have taken a long time... they know their body, but might not be able to tell someone). I myself don't have a lot of prescription meds but take quite a few supplements & I know some of them can interact with medicines so I always list them.
I just got home yesterday from an ER turned ICU 5 day stay in the hospital with my multiply disabled daughter. Happy to say I got so many of these things right. I’m glad you clarified medicines from home; my daughter has epilepsy and I will notice something being “off” when they change a med from one generic to another at the pharmacy and the hospital changed 3 all at once! While I understood that the ones in their system were easy to scan, it was too much for her and she had multiple scary big seizures on the third day there. A thoughtful respiratory therapist helped me advocate for my daughter and I stood my ground with nurses and doctors until they made scan codes for our home medications and used them they way we do at home. Her seizures stopped, she was safe. My heart was pounding speaking up, but ultimately, I’m glad I did.
I have a history of incredibly painful kidney stones. The doctor I was seeing in the ER thought I was drug seeking. He explained to me that he was a cop during the day, and doctor by night. He looked me up in their system that tells them the last time you've had a narcotic prescribed, saw it had been 6 weeks, then sent me on my way. Two days later, I was back, with a stone the size of a pencil eraser. I ended up with an incredible kidney infection, blood in my urine, and having to have lithotripsy. Sometimes it's no us.
I went to the ER one night with an unbearably painful toothache. I was about to rip my own head off to make the pain stop. The doctor thought I was drug seeking. Mind you, I have no history of drug abuse whatsoever. He sent me home after refusing to help me in any way. I got into my dentist's office the next day on an emergency basis. By this time I was nearly delirious. I had a severe abscess which had spread to my jawbone and caused an infection in the bone. My dentist immediately gave me IV antibiotics, (and morphine) and told me that I would have been dead in a few days from a brain infection if I hadn't gotten treatment when I did. He called the ER at the hospital and screamed at them for 20 minutes about their refusal to treat me. I later called the hospital and told them that I would not be paying my bill, and if they wanted to pursue payment I would file a lawsuit. In hindsight I should have filed a lawsuit anyway
3:18 My black grandmother would try to get me to eat her food when she was admitted at the hospital to make it look like she ate her dinner or lunch or breakfast sometimes. Instead of this being the case, what usually happens at my local hospital is that they also tend to get people who are visiting lunch and food as well so that you have your own food and the person who is supposed to be admitted also gets food and they can track that that person's food intake more accurately because you're not mooching off their plate and vice versa. On a big plus when I was there with my mother one time me and her both got plates and I ended up giving more food to my mother and I told the nurses and they tracked it. They really do keep track of all the food, a person eats and drinks
With the medication thing, my grandmother had CBD gumies she used for her back (she has a really bad back) when she was in the hospital for a triple bypass and she thought she needed to sneak the medication in. so i talked to the doctor for her and he was able to print up a label for her gumies and get them for her. Almost all doctors will work with you if you just ask.
As a scandinavian, it's insane (and sad) to me that people have to be told "you can lower the cost of your hospital stay if you shop around :)". Healthcare is a basic human right and should be free (as it is here)
@@ep6600 But he said „if you NEED to use an air ambulance“. If you need one in Germany - where I live and where we have universal healthcare - you would not need to shop around since you will not have to pay for it. If you want to use one and there is no need for this means of transportation, you cannot use it and pay for it yourself because it is reserved for the patients that need it. So the use of an air ambulance is always free of charge in Germany - and most European countries as far as I know.
@@ep6600 Hey if you need to be transported by heli (or an ambulance plane for that matter), even in non-emergency cases, it is very much still free here
Canadian here. I would only “shop” around since the hospitals here in rural Alberta suck and there are some that are better than others. Plus the hospitals here are so under-staffed that you sometimes have to go to different hospitals to get care
I've never personally thought nurses were lesser than doctors, probably in part because one of the few things I remember of a hospital trip when I was six was there was a man in scrubs who was nice to me and made me feel a little less terrified (which is quite something, considering over-emotional six year old with a deep, bleeding head wound who would later go on to become a theatre kid), and I talked to Mum about what I thought of this man, and I called him a doctor to which Mum corrected me on that he was actually a nurse. The other few things I recall with clarity are the medication process before the stitches where I think they tried to give me an oral medication but I was a stubborn little lad and outright refused, so they instead put it right up my nose where I distinctly recall firmly thinking "I am not going to swallow this." only for it to be swallowed anyways. Oh, and the egg sandwich. Clearest thing I recall of that trip, being on a recovery bed and being given an egg sandwich which I greatly enjoyed and a red apple which sat in the backseat of the car for literal months :P
I definitely agree with the "advocate for yourself" one. I went to the dentist to get a cavity drilled, and they were planning on using nitrous on me to numb the pain a little. I told the nurse that I couldn't see my cavity in the mirror, and just wanted to make sure that there actually was a cavity. There was one, but they realized how small it was and decided not to do the nitrous. It saved me $100 and a lot of time. You should always ask questions before anything if you have a concern, it always works out for the better.
@@haydito1447 nitrous is laughing gas…you’d know if they gave you Novocaine (a needle) or nitrous (gas given with a mask with hoses, similar to an oxygen mask). I’m a wimp so I usually get both. Insurance pays for it that or my angel dentist doesn’t worry about it
@@haydito1447Nitrous doesn't really do much to numb the pain, it's more to relax you, gives you kind of a floating, pleasant feeling. If that's what they planned to use, it definitely would have been a very superficial cavity.
I was in hospital for 4 days. Shared my room with a 80 y/o grandma. We both had gall bladder removal surgery. We ended up chatting sooo much and shared meals :0 … but we were fine ^^
I actually (as a patient) went to hospitals quiet regularly as a family member was admitted, they had a clear "no eating" rule for her, it was strictly fluids (ice was an exception) she "ate" ice, drank water, wasn't allowed soda/other drinks just yet. They gave her a full tray of food,sides, dessert, and a soda on the side now they did realize the mistake maybe 10-15 minutes after they left it there and they told us we could eat it or else it would up in the trash.
Same, when my grandmother was at the hospital, she was refusing to eat anything by her mouth, so she was fed using a feeding tube. Still, the hospital kept sending meals for her and my mother (who was sleeping there with her). One time I was visiting around lunchtime I ate some. If no one eats it, it's going to the trash.
Dr. Mike opening the gifts was ADORABLE!! 😂 Sooo nerdy and genuinely excited, what a sweetheart! And people know him VERY well since those gifts hit right on the mark too! I really enjoyed that part all around! 😊
being chronically ill, i'm at my hospital every 2 weeks, and having my specific nurses has helped so much, since they can see if things don't go well from my body language, know my full diagnosis, and I can ask them many things
Keep a patient care journal: log every med given and when it was given, what your pain status is, which doctors/nurses/physical therapists etc. came to see you and what they said - basically log anything that happens. Because of the environment, sleep schedule, medications, and all the information you are given, it is easy to get confused and medical staff aren't perfect. Keeping a record will make them take you more seriously when you ask questions, make complaints, or ask for meds. Also, it helps with pain control: if you're allowed pain meds every 4-6 hours and your journal shows your pain peaks at 5 hours but it normally takes 45 minutes for staff to get meds to you, you need to ask for it every 4 hours. Find out when shift change is and plan accordingly: ask for anything 30 minutes before shift change and they will leave it to next shift, if you ask for it when new shift starts, they will be so busy with shift meeting, finding out what's going on and preparing for shift that it will be another hour at least before you get care. Anything that can't wait until an hour or more after shift change needs to be addressed an hour or more before it. Keep a bowl/tray/stack of candy/snacks for the staff in your room and publicize it - you will get them dropping in all day "to check on you" and get better care. Even if they don't want it, they will think better of you for caring about them. Try to have someone stay with you if allowed, but make sure it's the right person. Someone who you don't feel the need to entertain, someone who is content to sit quietly for hours, someone who will religiously help you keep log book and remember questions you wanted to ask, and most of all someone who will be respectful of staff yet speak up for you.
Ive had multiple hospitalizations for one to three weeks and all this is SO GOOD!!!! It took me a long time to figure all this out and when I did my stays were so much more comfortable
I’m glad you are discussing being your own advocate. I’ve had two doctors agree I am allergic to pitocin, and basically don’t do well with any artificial hormones. My last birth was a hospital transfer from a birthing center and my birth plan specifically stated not to use pitocin for induction or c-section after care. My two midwives, my husband, and I all explained this to the doctor because she refused to believe I had any issues with the the meds (which are technically being used off script when related to birth). Despite written and verbal refusal to consent, the doctor still tried to give me pitocin after surgery. Hubby checked everything that they gave me and verified with me what the bag was, then promptly told the nurse still messing with my meds he would yank the IV out of my arm if she didn’t immediately remove it. She automatically called the doctor and the doctor immediately had her put a saline bag in instead to prevent hemorrhaging (FYI, pitocin caused me to hemorrhage during my first birth, plus immediate postpartum psychosis issues, among other things). Lack of being able to advocate for myself or have true informed consent during my first birth has me still dealing with birth trauma PTSD. I would have never taken pitocin knowing my history with artificial hormones and would have skipped straight to surgery if the doctor had just explained the magnesium they were giving me to stabilize my HELLP syndrome would cause dilation to be almost impossible. But everything was forced on me.
Wow that's terrible, I'm so sorry. I wonder what kind of god complex these people have in just...deciding what you're allergic to apparently?? Birth trauma is real and I hope you are getting the help you need.
If you had a cesarean your body does not always realize you have given birth, so the use is critical for preventing hemorrhage. Did you have an allergy to the medication?
Severely dislocated & broke my ankle. They set it, discharged me. Slipped in the rain, and landed back on it, hearing a crunch again. Went back to the ER. Shift change for nurses. The one nurse/phleb put the IV for pain killers in the same arm from just hours before. Although, she missed the vein! I knew she missed the vein because it was forming a bubble and was burning, but she said she’s the nurse, she knows what she was doing. (I briefly had used drugs in my past, shooting it, so I knew she missed the vein). I was screaming as they fixed the re dislocation. I got lucky because a nurse from the earlier visit walked by, saw my mother, heard me screaming and knew something was wrong (because earlier I had a positive attitude and was joking about my misfortune). She took one look, took it out and put it in the other arm. She made a note that the nurse/phleb clearly missed it. She was happy that I stood up for myself and made it known that there was something wrong
Rule 4 almost caused us to lose my son, my partner (who suffers from CPTSD) was told she could leave as nothing was wrong and were getting ready to do the discharge papers,my partner fought and fought they said " it's your anxiety of being a first time mum" they reluctantly gave her a scan...the baby wasn't moving all together, rushed into the labour ward and begun inducing, he had breathing problems and had to be in the ICU. he is perfectly healthy now and just turned 1yr old but if we listened...we wouldn't of had our child....
As a pregnant woman, you know your body better than anyone and you SHOULD advocate for yourself indeed. My mom was almost told to go back home on her 4th and 5th pregnancy. She had to say "doc/nurse, I've had 3/4 kids already, I know how my delivery works. Please admit me or I'm going to have this baby right here while "walking out"..." I gotta say, as a kid I thought labor and delivery always happened in about 5-7 hours altogether (3-5 for (early) contractions and 2 to get to the hospital and get out of delivery room) because that's how I met my lil bros & sis XD
YES YES YES to the advocacy. Back when I was diagnosed with T1D, they intentionally used short needles since I didn't need anything longer and longer needles felt like they hurt far more. I was terrified of longer needles. Once, a new nurse came in with a needle twice the size of the one usually used to administer insulin to me. I kept insisting that I swore the other one was shorter and after giving up trying to convince me I was wrong, she actually asked someone else to look and found the original needle size. Not that big of a deal, but it make my little brain both relieved and proud :')
I had one with needles too. It happened when I was in my early 20's Nurse was having a hard time finding the right spot in my hands, after the 4 or 5th hole it was more painfull than I could bear and I started to scream in pain. The nurse then went shaming saying to everybody hear (it was a comunal room with around 6 or more beds) how I was acting like a little baby and that I was a small kid afraid of needles. I got pissed and yelled "I'm a regular blood donor, I used to put needles on my hand as kid because was bored, I take blood and get medicine without a flinch. I'm saying this. is. hurting. too much!" She fronze long enough to a doctor show up to deescalate, he send her to another patient and get another nurse to give me the medicine. It hurt because my had was already sore but was bearable.
The needle size matters! If you don't need an 18 gauge cannula (big! Like the Red Cross uses for blood donations!), a 22 or 24 gauge should be quite enough! To me it seems like she didn't want to wait a "long time" for the insulin to pass through the needle. Good on you!
@UCHhHuXfqjp7vPNp4eISJzwA TL;DR Don't dig with the needle: you're cutting tissue and causing unnecessary bruises. Two strikes (needle sticks) and you're out! Donors don't have to give blood that day and can come back a few days later. On a double-arm machine, neither the phlebotomist nor the nurse could hit my veins. After a long history of giving gallons of whole blood and many double units of platelets, I left and never gave blood again. Give blood! Story For some reason, if someone doesn't get the stick right away, they will dig around for the vein under the skin. They did that to me at the Red Cross with a _big effin' cannula,_ and when I saw what was causing me to hurt more and more, I saw he was digging like that. "Hey! Hey! Hey!" I yelled. "You're cutting tissue! Take it out!" When you're donating blood, you really don't need to do that. The donor can leave and come back at another time pretty soon because their RBC's are still mature. I was giving platelets, a double unit because I had a normally large platelet count. Platelet units are good for clotting factor for hemophiliac patients. They consolidate ten units at a time to make it, so the Red Cross love people like me. I was giving on a double arm machine, which meant I needed a needle in both arms. One to give, the other to return my red blood cells (RBC's). I dismissed the phlebotomist and asked for the nurse. If she couldn't hit my veins -which at the time were not hard to hit- I would leave. The nurse couldn't hit them, either, which is what I expected after all the digging, and I left the blood-drawing site, never to return. I am proud to have donated over 3 gallons of blood over the years (8 units is about a gallon), and I got my pins for them (a golden blood drop with numbers on it). I also gave many double units of platelets. And I get sad that I can't let myself give anymore (not just placing the needles). Please give blood! It's about a five minute draw plus snacks to help replenish you. Yes, you have to answer a bunch of questions, and you get a lancet stick to get a hematocrit reading. ( _ouch!_ ) You sometimes wait for a table, but it's worth it. Every unit helps at least three people with packed red blood cells, plasma, platelets, and more. The blood supply is a dynamic and living supply. Each unit can only last 21 days in the refrigerator. 90 days IIRC in the freezer. Blood is always needed, and it gets shunted around a lot from blood bank to blood bank to fill transfusion needs.
My daughter has cerebral palsy so we have had many ER visits. I learned very quickly not to mention how quiet it was in there. It never failed that all of a sudden you would see so many people being brought in. The worst blood draw I ever had was from a doctor. My arm was bruised almost down to my wrist and halfway up my arm. It took a long time to go away.
Advocacy is so important for so many reasons. My mother's on quite a few medications for her mental health, much like I am, and when she was last admitted to the hospital, the one in charge of her medications refused to give her the main one she takes for her severe depression, something she's taken consistently for over thirty years. They were treating her like she was an addict arguing for pain meds. It was only when my aunt stepped in that they admit they didn't know what that medication even was. Like, it wasn't even an issue with interactions. They just refused to look into the medication at all because they didn't recognize it when she brought it up. Thankfully there weren't any interactions (it's a pretty tame antidepressant iirc?) so they were able to administer it while she was hospitalized, but I swear we were all ready to rock someone's jaw for treating my mom that way, lmao.
A few days ago I was in the ER with a dislocated jaw. I was expecting everyone to be grumpy since it was nighttime but all the staff were very nice people and that helped a lot, cause it was pretty terrifying. It's a good thing I don't do drugs or anything cause I literally couldn't tell them if I did lol.
I'm so glad you had a good experience!! To anyone worried about not being able to communicate something important for a similar reason (or any reason): we have plenty of methods to communicate with patients that are not verbal! Pen and paper would work great in a situation like this, but we have things for other conditions which cause difficulty with verbal communication too (like picture boards!). Please please stand up for yourself and communicate what you need to communicate, and we will do our best to make that process easier for you!
Just so you know, most people working the night shift actually start at night or evening, or mid day and will be getting off soon. They don't have someone from 6 am until 6 am the next day. Maybe a doctor in surgery or something but of course I'm sure you meant the whole of the staff. If a medical professional is grumpy towards their patient during their shift that is highly unprofessional, even with the fact that people have human emotions. I hope you are doing better but you shouldn't be afraid to go to the ER for a real emergency (which yours was!).
I went through a horrible experience about 15 years ago, (I don’t want to post the exact details), let’s just say I was in the hospital for something, and the nurse I got for the first part of my stay was WONDERFUL, explaining what was going to happen, what to expect, and I was so thankful for her guidance while going through a terrible time.
I am a CNA. I was visiting one of my residents in the hospital and they asked if I would assist. The patient has diminished cognition and a history of violence, but being familiar with him I was sure I could help. He was uncharacteristically cooperative, FOR THE FIRST ATTEMPT. By the third try he was extremely agitated, and I was pissed. I insisted on another nurse to draw the blood. I was able to get him to settle down and we got the blood sample. They explained that the first nurse was new at drawing blood. I expressed my disappointment at them deciding to use this patient as a guinea pig. I informed my supervisor but don't know what actions may have been taken.
Friend of my dads hurt his back and went to the ER, and the doctor discharged him WAY to soon. Long story short, the friend had significant back problems the doctor didn’t diagnose and address and being sent home made things worse, to the point he’s suffered partial paralysis, leading to him sueing the hospital and doctor and winning. If memory serves me right, it was revealed during discovery that the hospital had this bonus program in the ER, where if a doctor gets a patient out in a short time (I think 2 hours) they got a bonus, so the doctor was more occupied trying to get bonuses then treating patients.
Add on to that crappy incentive system that back problems are amongst the hardest things to properly diagnose if it is not something able to be seen on an x-ray/CAT scan.
My mom got the best advice from a neurosurgeon years ago when I was a baby and had to be sent to the children’s hospital. He told her “trust your gut especially when it comes to your children. You know your children better than the doctors and when you know something is wrong and the doctors brush you off, ask for another opinion until someone listens to you. Doctors sometimes believe that they know better but that is not always the case”
Several years ago my mother went in for a hysterectomy and she kept complaining that she was having difficulty breathing. The nurse would come in and adjust the wrap that was around her waist and after some point told my mother she couldn't adjust it anymore. Granted my mother was heavy dosed with pain meds but it took until the next day for the doctor to appear and check her out to learn she developed pneumonia and said they should have been notified last night that she was having issues breathing but none of the nurses called it in despite her and us alerting each nurse even during the shift changes. Ended up being 3 different nurses we alerted over it... Evening, night, and morning shift nurses. (( My mom has COPD since before the surgery and other complications that has occurred since the operation but not involving her lungs thankfully. ))
I had a c-section and they gave me morphine and I was allergic to it didn't know at the time. Called the nurse who argued with me. I then called my mom and she called the nurse and then called the drs when she wouldn't listen. My mom's a nurse.
my mom developed a different type of infection after hers. she had covid-like symptoms (this was before covid escaped the wuhan lab {my mom has never been to China}), and was in the hospital for a week. for a month afterward, she had an awful cough. she now has bell's palsy
It is important to listen to the patient, they know their bodies, their records, and intuition is on point most of the times. I know health professional have to go by a guideline, but listening to the patient can save some time. Once I endured 4 days with high fever, I suspected it was a kidney infection. I told doctors I thought it was something with my kidneys, but they told me it was only a flu, because either way i would've had an UTI first. I waited six hours for them to tell me that the test for flu wasnt right. After that, they told me it was a kidney infection and I was close to losing my kidneys.
I had a doctor take my blood once. It was a well respected teaching hospital. My blood was drawn by someone brand new. She really hurt me and I didn't want her touching me. So, he did it and I didn't feel a thing. My veins have always been easy to find. So I was surprised when tbe newbie had trouble. She hurt me so badly, I told her to stop.I am forever grateful for the doctor who successfully took my blood.
Amen to the nurse vs doctor thing. When you have a patient who wants the doctor to do a procedure instead, it's because they don't realize nurses are usually better at performing procedures because unlike doctors who are good at ordering procedures, nurses actually do them on a regular basis. Practice and experience are essential.
@@patrick-ip4yf Brah. You literally missed the whole point of what I said. If you need an IV placed in your arm and you'd rather have a doctor do it instead of the nurse it's because you're ignorant of how hospitals and clinics work. Many doctors have placed maybe one or two IVs in med school and never did it again. They never even got proficient at doing it. Nurses on the other hand do it every single day and become very good at it. The point is that doctors don't do most of the procedures that they order and are usually not as good as nurses at doing them. If you don't understand that then you don't have a good understanding of how real clinics function and you probably watch too many medical dramas on TV.
@@4dojo I was meaning to say Doctors don't do these procedures in the first place, because they are needed elsewhere, and Doctors all well within there authority to order these procedures as they went to medical school.
@@patrick-ip4yf Obviously your comment was intended to put nurses down, but in the end you just stated what everyone already knows. Doctors go to medical school and they play a different role in the medical field than nurses. That being said, nurses also intensively study medicine in college and the course is extremely difficult and competitive. I'm not pretending that RN programs are as long or difficult as MD programs, but make no mistake that becoming a nurse is far more difficult than obtaining most other college degrees. I speak from experience because I have graduated college multiple times and hold multiple college degrees. At my college the RN program was so intense and competitive that only a small percentage of applicants could achieve a high enough GPA to even get accepted into the program and more than half of those that could be into the program failed out anyway. And by the way, doctors are far from all knowing even in their fields. That's why there are so many specialties and sub specialties. As nurse I have on countless occasions called up doctors and practitioners to point out errors in their orders or even orders that just don't make sense given the situation. No, I'm not on the level of a doctor in terms of pharmacology, but like I said, nurses still need to know a great deal about medicine and pharmacology and we are trained and expected to notice med errors. Not noticing a doctor's prescription errors can actually get a nurse into trouble. So don't talk about nurses like they're fodder.
My mum was told she was overreacting when she saw two different GP’s about her thunder clap headaches. One gp was nice but dismissive, the other told her that she was overreacting. One thing about my mum is that she has an incredibly high pain threshold. They only took on board what was in front of them rather than my mums very obvious and serious symptoms. My mum told the GP that she would be going to have an mri privately….he told her not to bother wasting her money and they wouldn’t find anything, but said it was her choice. The morning of the scan results a very apologetic GP rang and told her she immediately needed to go to hospital as she had subdural haematoma!
My mom had a similar series of GPs tell her she was being hypercondriatic over a car crash she was in a good 15 years prior now, and eventually it was discovered she had actual spinal damage that was causing the pain she was in more or less constantly. It wasn't until a Therapeutic specialist literally went through the painscale with my mom and adjusted it for my MOM specifically that something didn't add up.... thus hospital MRIs and such right after and, well, my mom is now very distrustful of doctors and nurses and such that seem to be knowitall idiots that toss out diagnoses in minutes without even any direct examination first.
@@zaffytaffy809 Thank you. she had the operation to drain the blood but still suffers from head pain as the area is so sensitive to hot/cold and pressure etc. The area they drilled on the skull isn’t filled back in so she really suffers, unfortunately.
Women are less likely to be believed. When men and women describe pain with the same words. People believe men to be in worse pain than the corresponding women. It sucks
I spend a lot of time in hospitals. I have 2 serious medical conditions and I have several family members in the medical profession. I was impressed by my last stay (I'm not going to name names). During the shift change the doctor and nurses who were leaving with the doctor and nurses coming on would come into my room and go over all their notes with me confirming everything they were telling the new doctor. This was doubly important because my conditions are rare and we need to make sure everyone is up to speed in case one of them is triggered.
I'm glad you mentioned about other people consuming the patients food or beverage. I was hospitalized with a fungal blood infection and I was in septic shock. They kept track of what went in and came out. They would even keep track of popsicles they gave me. I was limited to 64 oz a day of fluids a day. It sounds like a lot but I drank constantly.
I got diagnosed with kidney failure and at the hospital the doctors were pushing very hard for me to leave the country since I didn't have citizenship or DACA at the time and it was so frightening because it was doctors and their secretaries essentially threatening us with the idea that immigration could somehow know of my whereabouts if I didn't go. Thankfully a couple latin social workers started being helpful to us and got emergency Dialysis and eventually got DACA as well so was able to get into Dialysis treatment center. I was 24 I am now 33 and still on dialysis if a episode on how organ transplant could be possible for undocumented people it would be incredibly helpful
That is very strange because even if you are a criminal and just killed someone the hospital still has to treat you/ save your life. Something seems sketchy if they can deny treatment just because you're not a citizen but if a citizen commits a crime they are fine keeping them alive. If they are legally allowed to deny treatment to people who aren't citizens then we really need to fix that ASAP because that is just unacceptable.
I know laws can vary from State to State but I would hope that CA (where I previously worked in healthcare) is not the only state where what happened to you is not allowed. At the MINIMUM you had grounds to file a grievance with the State medical licensing board. I wish for you good health and continued access to any medical care that you may require in the future.
@@CB-cv9yh I believe so to. but at the time not only was it a fear of health but safety and so much at once the idea of adding making any moves on a hospital or anything like that and not knowing if we could be protected was something we were not thinking of at that time. thank you for the well wishes
I'm guessing you may have been treated in Texas where they have incredibly regressive and racist laws. The ideal is that everyone must be treated equally if they require healthcare, but the reality is far from that in this "first world" country.
@@ginsoakedgirl4 No South Carolina, the hard part was they did it not in a "get out!" way. they said it in a " well there is nothing we can do, you have to go" so it was hard to know if it was the only option or not
At 2:00 I had my appendix removed and they were trying to get rid of me, but they didn't even really ask me how I was doing, though I felt fine. However, another nurse was very worried and against me leaving. I stood up and was walking toward the door, when I almost fainted and threw up. The nurse saw this and basically said that she was not discharging me. She refused to let me go. Even if she was fired, she wouldn't let us leave. Also proves a point for 4:40
So this is a story I have based off of your advocate for yourself, about 3 years ago I had a really bad accident and hit my head on a steel pole, went to the emergency room, I did not remember anything from the past 3 hours (aka the entire incident and drive to the hospital) and kept asking my dad what had happened. The doctor had claimed it was just a bump and nothing major, in the process of discharging me the night doctors came in and one of them saw why I had came into the ER and read that I couldn't remember anything as well as complaining about jaw pain, before discharging me they took me to go get a MRI to find out I had a brain bleed, I was sent to children's and underwent surgery due to a significant amount of blood between my brain and skull, I was told that if that doctor didn't do that MRI my brain would have likely stopped due to the pressure being put on it
Yes, that was clearly wrong decision from a doctor. Even people not trained understand that head traumas are possible BIG CAUSE for concern. And there is surely a protocol to follow about them. He was not following it! GLAD that your life was saved by that good doctor!
Glad the night shift guy saved you. After my accident they tried to make me walk on a broken hip and back so they could send me home in a Uber. I was unconscious when I came in but it was the state trooper finishing my accident report who talked to me about hitting my head and memory and how I felt. He should have arrested himself for practicing medicine without a license, but his diagnosis I was OK was correct.
I'd add: Be kind to hospital staff and health care workers. They are chronically tired, don't get enough time (or have none at all) to get a meal (much less a snack), are unable to go to the bathroom regularly, are overworked, have to deal with different personalities and difficult hospital policies, and yet they still do a phenomenal job trying to improve your quality of life in small and big ways alike. Sometimes, making small talk is something you can do to get their mind off their intense shifts. Sometimes, giving them a smile or a thank you makes them feel like they are seen and their effort appreciated. Sometimes, we just need to stretch our patience a bit, understand that they are doing the best that they can with what they have, and that their work is beyond just a profession, it is a daily and sincere act of compassion and empathy for those that they come into contact with. Please don't bark at them. Please don't humiliate them. Speak up when you need to, but please be mindful of tone of voice. I've seen firsthand how acknowledging their humanity makes it easier for them to be their best. Thank you, especially to all nurses, med techs, respiratory techs, rad techs, the orderly, and all others for the service and commitment you have. We would not being able to secure our health without your help. God bless you all.
I think it depends when you’re going against medical advice. I was admitted to the hospital and could see smoke and fire from my window. Being in the hospital I didn’t know there was an out of control fire just outside the city. I left against medical advice with my fiancé because I was concerned with what I was seeing out the window. We returned home and we were evacuated that evening. I’ll never forget the amount of fear, uncertainty, everything about leaving the hospital and then having to leave the city. It was insane. The hospital did evacuate but because of where the fire was they went north and it was awful. Glad we were all okay though.
@@tomewifecollector9608 You can contain a fire by spraying around the sides of it in a circle or semi circle to make it much harder to keep spreading. Also those are usually forest fires not city fires. And those usually get contained within a neighbourhood never heard of one burning down a city or town.
That's an outlier in my experience. Sadly, most of the cases I've seen of patients leaving against medical advice have been those with addictions they are not able to satisfy while in the hospital. So they leave before the thing they are admitted for is fully treated
I’ve been evacuated from my home in CA three times in the last few years because of wildfires and my boyfriend had to evacuate an entire hotel he worked at. They aren’t even near each other, the whole county was at risk. Not everything burned up, but the fires can definitely come close to a lot of homes and businesses while crews are trying to contain them.
I had a health clinic who discussed my health with a nurse there who just happened to be my roommate. The roommate shared the information with my other roommate. It was a very uncomfortable situation for me. There were NO boundaries with these people. No respect.
During covid my mom was hospitalized for something noncovid. She has chf and I kept calling and finally talked to a charge nurse. She said my mom was gaining fluid rapidly. I ask if they were giving her her lasix. They weren't. If I hadn't been that pesky family member calling, they would have drown her in her own fluids. 😔
I used to work as a pharmacy tech and one day I was restocking the wards when I had to tell a nurse to throw away some medication they had just dropped on the floor. They had dropped the medication cup and had the tablets go everywhere and then just scooped it all back up like "oh well, 5 second rule!" They ended up throwing away the meds (with some protestation) when I confronted them about it, but I still reported it to the ward manager. They just seemed so casual about putting the patient at risk, and then acted like doing the right thing was so unnecessary and inconvenient. Now that I think of it, that kind of behavior might've been part of the reason that ward got so many norovirus outbreaks.
I have been straight and honest with my doctors since years about some past drug abuse I've suffered (and have been treated for since). I get the sense that I'm not taken seriously when I really do need to discuss medication. I feel I've been labeled very negatively. Likely as drug seeking. Makes me feel like my mistakes have voided my respect-and-life-pass.
Regarding leaving AMA, that’s great advice to a point. It requires the treatment being provided to be at least minimally competent and at least involves consulting the patient’s primary specialist. I was 11 weeks pregnant when I had referred shoulder and abdominal pain, not like a miscarriage which I knew from many firsthand experiences. This was an IVF pregnancy and two embryos implanted. When the ER did the ultrasound they found a rupturing ectopic and one in my uterus. They would not speak with my reproductive endocrinologist and announced he had no privileges at this hospital (he did). Since I have a number of complicating medical issues they know nothing about since they don’t have my records, including a bleeding disorder that makes surgery extremely risky if not handled carefully. I asked to be transferred to my physician. They ridiculously invoked EMTALA and denied it. To me, a hospital in house counsel🙄 Even though I would have gone to a higher level of care they still refused. I had no choice but to leave AMA and have my husband drive me to my RE’s office which is co-located with a large hospital. It was all surreal. My RE examined me and confirmed the ectopic and that it wasn’t hemodynamically stable. I was sent across the parking lot to be admitted through the ER (ED). By the time they got me into a gown I had lost consciousness and have no memories until waking up in post op. I required a 2L blood transfusion but hospital #1 was equal parts ignorant and possessive, deeming anyone not on their staff unfit. They talked as though I hired a witch doctor versus one of the pioneers of in vitro reproduction. I received a highly inappropriate ultimatum: undergo surgery by a general surgery resident who had never seen my records or didn’t even take a history for me with no intent to preserve my in utero pregnancy or to leave AMA knowing I was already bleeding internally. I trusted my instincts both in going to the hospital at 0600 on a Saturday and in leaving hospital #1 AMA. And now in a post-Roe, anti abortion trigger laws kind of world people need to know my surgery would have been a violation in most states with the so called trigger legislation. You see, even an ectopic pregnancy has a heartbeat. It’s a completely normal pregnancy that implanted in the wrong place (and for all of the pro life morons who declare women in this scenario should “move the baby to the womb,” you can’t do that as it’s medically impossible.
Watched several people die after leaving AMA. Doctors would say, "I warned them. Here is the signed form". They didn't like it and were annoyed that the patient wouldn't listen.
The ectopic thing is not true I don’t k ow where your getting that from. It is absolutely false!!! This miscarriage thing is another completely false narrative. Please read the bills and if you don’t understand the language consult an attorney not tik Tok. Any surgery or procedures to save the mother that result in the fetus dying is not an abortion and the all the bills are written to allow for that. I mean it’s a duh! Everyone acts like pro life advocates just want to murder women or something. How crazy is that? Pro life advocates are just as concerned for the mothers as they are the babies, they prove it every day in many ways that never seem to cross over into the mainstream narrative.
I'm gonna put my neck on the line and say that I am against abortion. HOWEVER, I am willing to accept medical emergencies such as ectopic pregnancy. I am aware that certain emergencies can and will be fatal to both the baby and the mother if action is not taken. If the abortion is for the purposes of saving your social status, that's where my line is drawn.
Regarding AMA: when I was working in independent living and we did nursing home transitions to get people out in the community on their own - we had to use AMA often, because the LTCFs have financial incentive to keep the patient. LTCFs aren't hospitals. But I just had to comment, sometimes AMA is necessary.
6:03 Don’t be afraid to leave a hospital and go to another one if they’re not treating you urgently enough. I was suffering immense pain, constantly vomiting (when I hadn’t eaten in the 4 days that I suffered at home before finally going) with a stomach issue when I left an ER after they “triaged” me placed an IV in my arm (with no meds for relief) and sent me back to the waiting for for over 1-2 hours. They were calloused an rude when I went and asked how much longer I’d have to wait. I drove 20+ minutes (in the worst pain of my life, this was worse than the strongest contractions with no meds) to another hospital and after I told them I’d just left another ER and explained my symptoms they gave me a CT scan and rushed me into emergency surgery. Internal hernia repair. I’d needed it for at least 2 years, but every time I went to the ER they gave me pain meds and sent me away. THANK GOD I listened to my intuition and left. There’s a 50% mortality rate for the condition I was suffering from.
Being a patient advocate for my 90 year old mother. My mom was on hospice care, I had been her caregiver for a few years, taking her to doctor appointments, managing her medicines. I've always liked to research about things so I was going through the drugs in the hospice kit and got to morphine. I researched it and found it was in the same family of drugs as codeine, which my mom had had an anaphylaxis event with. I brought this up with both the nurse and then the doctor who would visit and didn't believe me. I researched further and found something written by an ER doctor about a synthetic morphine that was safer to use. I again talked to the doctor, who was admittedly a little peeved with me at this point but she made two calls to other doctors. The first didn't know but the second, an ER doctor, agreed with me and so my mom was prescribed the new drug, and just in time as a couple weeks later I she needed it and I'd have to give her some a few times a week.
I'd love a more detailed video about advocation. A personal example was being in the emergency room for about 17 hours without even being scanned. My husband said after the first hour talking to lots of staff, someone checked on me every 3 hours. After requests for updates and information was ignored I decided to leave. I was told it would be AMA because "if you leave you could have a stroke" and my response was "if I stay here I could have a stroke." Found out at a neuro appointment 6 months later that I did have a stroke. My symptoms were worst before arriving, which is why I decided to go in. They told me I was to young to be having a stroke. I think that's why they didn't prioritize treating me. Also it was a December Friday night in Wisconsin. I know they were busy, but that doesn't seem to excuse failing to examine and treat me... I'm sure there was a much better way I could have gone about this situation. I'd like the opportunity for everyone to learn how to go about speaking up for ourselves and what to do if our concerns don't seem heard.
Regarding the advocating for yourself, I was at a navy clinic for a yearly checkup and the person reading my file to me mentioned I was b- blood type, I politely spoke up to tell him I am O+ to which asked who told you that. My response was "the Red Cross" and pulled out my donor card that listed my blood type. He said well that looks official enough and wrote in the correct blood type. It actually says O+ on my bootcamp dog tags too. Glad I never needed a blood transfusion at that clinic though!
Thank you for saying the early and safe discharge thing. I am a denials and appeals/utilization nurse and we see so many patients refusing to go because it’s too late (at 8pm) and they’d rather sleep in an additional night or for another non medical or safety related issue. Meanwhile, I was admitted in January with pyelonephritis in my transplanted kidney and I could not wait for my C&S to be back and my fever to be absent for 24hrs to get the hell out of there. Hospital beds give you intense back pain.
I dunno why but this reminds me of when my mom got diagnosed with cancer when i was 17. My dad was shocked and shaken, had no questions cause he couldn't think. I remember asking the doctor everything, so much so that the doctor advised I be her caretaker instead of my dad. I got to watch how they change her colostomy and even helped out obviously regarding non emergent situations with her. I've always had an interest in medicine and I thank my little 5-6 year old self looking up medical things on the internet. Im 20 now, unfortunately mom didn't make it but I know i'm going to do something medical now.
If you like microscopes you might like cytology. Cytologists work in medical laboratories. We look at cells and diagnose diseases (our main focus is cancer) based on what the cells look like. We work closely with pathologists.
I remember when my mom got a concussion, it changed our lives forever. She was ok and got out of the hospital with time. After the events that happened after that, I got really sad. My mom found your channel and showed it to me since I want to be a doctor. I have to say, thank you for brightening my life Doctor Mike.
My son is a brain injury survivor too, so I know what you're going through. Your mom will never be the same person she was, but try to be patient with who she is now and love her unconditionally. She'll be so proud of you when you walk across that stage to get your M.D. diploma. Good luck!
My hospital failed to diagnose my concussion and mild tbi. I now have permanent post concussion syndrome where I am dizzy all the time, have memory problems, visions problems it sucks and I hate that my local hospital is known as the worst one in the province
I agree for the part about leaving the hostal against medical advice but my mom did it to me once: after appendicitis operation, i was supposed to stay at the hospital for 3 days and stayed 2 weeks because i couldnt eat anything and would throw up "nothingness" several times a day, no one could know what to do. My mom was sure it was anxiety due to being in the hospital, i was loosing a lot of weight for a 9 year old, and against medicaal advice we left - and i started eating again at home soooooooooo she was right lol
I was in the hospital for a broken leg. They had an IV hooked up to me for hydration and antibiotics. I was still thirsty though. My mom asked if I could have Gatorade from the vending machine. The nurses gave an estatic yes because Gatorade helps hydrate and makes hitting the body's blood tubes easier. They always got it on the first try.
My nurse contribution: Visitors - never ever let your toddlers/small children crawl around on, or play on hospital floors. Not in the waiting rooms, patient rooms, not ANywhere.
Yes. A thousand times yes.
Eww imagine all the nasty stuff on the floor I can’t imagine letting a small child crawl around in that
Not anyway in the world
Should be common sense but it definitely isn’t 😩.
People think that because its a hospital or clinic the floor must be disinfected but its not true!! Ive seen kids literally dragging themselves on the floor!! 😖 I just cringe!!
Many years ago, my grandfather left AMA. He knew he was about to die and, he said he wouldn't die in a hospital, that he wanted to die at home. He also said, there were too many things at home to take care of before he died. So, when he was given the news, he probably wouldn't last another day or two, he checked himself out. He went home that morning, took care of his garden and a few other things around the house, as well as some paperwork, then around supper time, he said he was going to take a nap. Gave his wife a kiss and hugged her, sat down in his recliner, put on the tv and went to sleep for the last time. He always said, he'd know the time he was going to go.
):
That’s sad
@@_The_RFG_Club_ Nah, at least he went away on his own and with dignity.
@@_The_RFG_Club_ thank you but, not really. I respected him for things like that. He knew when he was going to go, and wanted it to be on his terms. He was a good man, and lived a good life. He knew there was no fighting the inevitable.
@@macD723 We all have to go but he went in the way all of us dream, peaceful in mind and body and on his own terms.
Yes, advocate for yourself! The doctors almost gave my mom the wrong chemotherapy drug before she had a stem cell transplant. She kept telling them it wasn’t right, it wasn’t the one her oncologist told her she was going to have and they insisted it was. She kept insisting until a nurse who had picked up an extra shift and wasn’t even supposed to be there noticed how nervous and worried she seemed. The nurse asked what was up and my mom explained. The nurse was the one to finally convince the doctors it was wrong. The next day the entire department, including all the heads of it and a bunch of other hospital higher ups appeared in her room begging for forgiveness and for a second chance. My mom said “I literally don’t have a choice. I will die if I don’t have this transplant and no one else anywhere near here will do it.” They were extra extra careful after that and were almost obnoxiously nice to us. Advocate for yourself until they’re forced to believe you!
I’m so sorry that happened I hope your mom is doing better. I’m scared to advocate for myself or others because I’m shy and insecure and I know it’s a big thing but usually it’s like the seniority mindset of doctors that makes me think they should know what they’re doing but I’ll learn from your story to do better in sticking up for myself and others
We're they sorry sorry? Maybe they were. Did they want to avoid complaints to the AMA and. lawsuit? Yes they did.
For me, the few times I've been in the hospital, I've had to advocate for myself regarding blood draws and IV's. First, I've learned to not let just anyone stick me. I'm a hard stick, so I always tell them this and insist that they get the ultrasound tech to do it. Sometimes they try to convince me they can do it themselves, but no, I know my body. Get the machine.
The other thing was that one time I was in the hospital for a very bad case of mono. (My tonsils swelled so much, my throat closed up.) They came in my room 3 or 4 times a day to draw blood. And this was before I knew to ask for the ultrasound machine. So each time they stuck me, they would stick me multiple times. I had bruises all over. It was horrible. So finally I got so mad about it, I told them they got to take my blood once a day, no more. Especially since it was mono. There was no real reason they needed my blood.
During my mother's final illness, I had to do some pretty forceful advocating for her. I made sure they understood that she was DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) and I questioned what medications they were giving her. The hospital was sold in the middle of her stay, and they immediately lost access to the computer system they were using. They had to go to paper records which wasn't working well.
Another time a couple of years before, I had to insist to a surgeon that yes, my mother needed a few opiate pain killers to take for a few days after the procedure. I told him that my mom had a low pain threshold, and that she wasn't an addict, which she wasn't. I was polite, but I think he realized I was going to make trouble if he didn't prescribe them. I understand that doctors are afraid they'll lose their license if they prescribe opioids, but in this case, I felt she needed them.
Although I 100% the "advocate for yourself" advice, it's also good to keep in mind that you, as a patient, can be wrong too; so for whatever the issue is insist on being shown evidence/proof that the doctors/nurses are correct and you're in the wrong. In the case Allison described I would demand the hospital get a hold of my oncologist to confirm with them and me that they had gotten it right and I was wrong. In other words, it's OK to believe you're right, and to insist on some way of settling the issue; but be willing to admit you're wrong if there's convincing evidence you are. In all matters of factual disputes (in hospital or anywhere else in life) evidence is king.
My law student contribution: Always read the Informed Consent Forms. It is extremely important you understand the procedure and its risks (from the common ones to the rare ones). I cannot stress this enough, read the Informed Consent and ask all the questions you may have before you sign it. No doctor who is worth their salt should refuse to answer your questions; questions are expected and even encouraged.
AND educate yourself on implied consent.
Then why have so many dentists and doctors acted like I’m weird for asking tons of questions?
My law student contribution: Always read the Informed Consent Forms. It is extremely important you understand the procedure and its risks (from the common ones to the rare ones). I cannot stress this enough, read the Informed Consent and ask all the questions you may have before you sign it. No doctor who is worth their salt should refuse to answer your questions; questions are expected and even encouraged.
I remember when I got a colposcopy, they gave me the informed consent papers after the procedure when I was shaking and about to pass out from the pain
Yes yes yes, I almost never see patients at our clinic read the consent form even for riskier procedures. And as much as I feel honored that they trust us to take care of them, I would much rather they read the form.
When my mum was in hospital at the end of her life she was unable to talk about D.N.R. She had talked to us (her children) about it. I had to tell the doctor that she did not want her life prolonged if her heart stoped. They resuscitated her 10 times before I was so upset that I screamed out enough she did not want this. They then rang my other siblings to find out what I said was true. So yes please talk to your doctor about a DO NOT RESUSCITATE order. It will take a lot of stress off your children
Having worked ER registration, I cannot stress enough how important it is. Some people would get upset when I asked if they had a DNR or advanced directive, but I've seen situations exactly like you described. It's super important to have that stuff lined up not just for you, but also for your loved ones. I'm so sorry you had to deal with that. I don't know if this helps, but I can explain what might have contributed to that situation. Part of the problem is the whole liability issue. If they don't have a notarized DNR on file, it can blow up in their face and become a legal issue, as with there being no official documentation, they could be sued over it. Then there's also family members that are trying to get away with something. That's why they had to call your siblings to confirm. We all the time had family members who had medical power of attorney that thought they could override the patient's decisions because they had POA... WHILE the patient was very much conscious and capable of making their own decisions. Then there's family fights and disagreements, people giving the doctors and nurses conflicting information. It's really frustrating to know that a few rotten people end up making all these extra hoops to jump through. It puts extra stress on everybody and can delay care or important end of life decisions like this. Anyway, sorry about the small essay. I'm sorry about your loss, and I hope you're doing well.
Absolutely agreed. My mom's last hospital visit, she was just lucid enough to tell us that she didn't want the breathing tube OR CPR/etc., and my stepdad and I made sure the doctors and nurses were aware of this. They honored it, even without paperwork. Gotta have an advocate who knows what you want when you're in that situation.
In most countries it is best to prepare something in writing. Place it somewhere readily-available to your next of kin and make sure they know about it. (Add something about your preferences regarding organ donations.) Very useful and stress-reducing for the next-of-kin.
Absolutely disgusting behaviour from the staff. I’m so sorry that you had to go through that.
Edit: I mean they shouldn’t have done it that many times even without the dnr order it would have been traumatic
I work at primary care and I tell every patient over 65 to do their directive. Hospitals often contact us to get their last official copy (patient is supposed to give us a copy). So many patients don't do them and its frustrating for exactly this reason. I know it is scary to think about end of life but I tell them it's really a gift for their loved ones so the trauma you experienced doesn't happen. I'm so sorry you went through that
“Never insist the doctor is better than the nurse” OH BOY IS THAT THE TRUTH, in my experience, I spent several months in the hospital, and let me tell you... I WAS SO GRATEFUL when the nurses would do things especially dressing changes. Not to say doctors are not essential and wonderful humans for doing what they do, but there’s nothing like a nurse when it comes to bed side manor and calming down a terrified 21-year-old with a ruptured femoral artery. Love your content !!
OMG yes! I am so grateful for having such great nurses in my intern years, they teach us a lot!!
My friend accidentally cut her arm open while setting up her daughters swing set. The ER doc was super nice and gave great stitches and then bandaged her arm after. The nurse came over to go over discharge paperwork and saw the state of the bandage and flat out said " I love Dr.-------, but let me rebandage that"
It's almost as if nurses are trained in nursing...
It comes from people wanting the best diagnosis. Who does the best diagnosis? The person who knows the most about medical stuff in general, meaning the doctor.
I'm a bit of an exponent of that issue myself, as my mother was nearly killed by a nurse who saw her with CLEAR symptoms of high blood pressure for a blood pressure test, but instead decided she knew everything, refused to do the test, told my mother to go eat lots of crisps and other salty stuff to increase her blood pressure and sent her home.
Anyway, not two weeks later she was in the ICU with a blood pressure of 195/130 on the brink of death and her kidneys are pretty much shot at about 20% capacity left.
The kidney specialist commented that if we'd been 1-2 weeks earlier, it's quite likely the kidney function would've been far more intact.
So yeah, if you ever meet anyone insisting to see a doctor, it could be me, since I'll do that whenever I detect any signs of medical people of any kind going outside of their expertise or trying to just get rid of us out of either busyness or lazyness.
I do by contrast greatly apreciate medical workers being honest about their thought proces. Had a great time despite the pain when I broke two metatarsal bones and dislocated a toe, because two doctors in training couldn't figure it out, a doctor couldn't figure it out, but they admitted that this combination of fractures and dislocation is not something in any manual and they had trouble deciding on a course of action, because every way of taping everything back together also came with a warning label not to do that in case of something else I had.
In the end they called in a professor as well, together with another couple of medical students and had two books open as they decided on the best way to tape everything together.
The foot never fully recovered and this was a huge bugbear during military service, sports and longer hiking since, but I know for damned sure that everything that could be done for it, was done, because they were honest about their thought proces and limitations.
Save the secrecy and "I know best" for the people who lost the genetic lottery and have an IQ where only "I'm wearing a white coat, trust me bro" inspires confidence.
fr both doctors and nurses have important skills and would need each other's help hence why they're a team
I was admitted once and I remembered that the doctors were trying to draw blood from an artery. I have always had a hard time getting my blood drawn. This time it was really painful for some reason. They failed 4x (1 nurse and 3 doctors) and on the 5th try it was like a senior nurse who nailed it. Thats when I knew, nurses are really superior when it comes to drawing blood
When I was admitted from the ER, I was so dehydrated that they had to get the ambulance paramedic to find a vein. He did it in one shot. Love that guy, because of him I was finally able to get pain meds!
Once when I was getting blood drawn, I can't remember what it was for, but it was the doctor's first time drawing blood, and it took her about 3 tries. She never did get any out, 'cause I passed out the third time and scared the sh*t out of her. Had to go to a nurse, and she got it done in less than 5 minutes.
Yeah the people at are hospital cant draw blood i often leave looking like my arm is beaten
Drs and nurses do not draw blood, phlebotomists do it.
Ask for a butterfly needle. If you have small veins, that needle is better.
Imma come clean: one time I was in the hospital for sepsis infection and one of the night time nurses was being extremely rude to me basically saying I was faking my infection symptoms for attention and I simply said "I hope you have a quiet shift sir"
Surprise: it wasn't a quiet shift for him
i love this comment 😂
Evil asf
Kinda like "May you live in interesting times."
Using it like a witch's curse is definitely the correct action LOL
Murphy law activates 😂
"never be a afraid to advocate for yourself"
I feel I have made a thousand videos about this piece of advice. Always talk to your doctor. Always ask for explanation. Show them that you care. Show them that you are getting informed about your condition. It can make all the difference in the world.
And reject treatment if you want to. Including leaving AMA. You may not want the life your medical providers want to give you.
I mean, shouldn't that be their basic job, to explain this in the first place? You come in and say you have an issue, that means you care right? To say you have to show them you care is a bit silly. The point of going to a doctor who does so much schooling is so they can explain why you may be feeling that way and why they are treating you, or refer you to a specialist (which is more money out of your pocket by the way) or consult for more information. A lot of people feel scared to ask for a reason because they feel they are talking back to the doctor who is supposed to know more than them. Everyone tells people now not to get advice from the internet, just to listen to your doctor, but now you have to inform yourself and your doctor, which doesn't make sense. Tell your doctor everything, sure, but isn't it up to them to decide what is going on or refer accordingly if it is an actual thing they can't fix? I mean you could get a second opinion, but here in America that cost extra money, so how can we discern which doctor to trust, and now we have to make sure they tell us what they already should be telling us? I know for a fact reviews can't be trusted, and paying hundreds of dollars for a consult or being stuck in a closed network plane due to cost and/or having help from the government prohibits a lot of Americans from doing this. Assuming you are America since this TH-cam channel is about the American health system. I totally understand there are times where it may be necessary but your comment makes it seem as if people have to constantly be worries they are giving the wrong information, yet we are taught to listen to health officials (covid pandemic for example).
Advocating for yourself only goes so far - if they refuse to listen, there is nothing the patient can do. That's firsthand experience from myself and people in my family. It'd be nice if more medical people listened when patients advocate for themselves.
Thank you. I need this reminder. I have trouble verbalizing and with communication, so I'm not good at it. But I've had some traumatic things happen as a result. (I'm diagnosed with autism and social anxiety)
It’s so annoying when you’re in the ER, you know what treatment works best for your condition when it gets to the point of needing to go to the ER, but the doctor refuses to treat you that way even after asking you what treatment works best for you, and then refuses to come back into your room to talk to you about it. So you end up just taking the treatment they’re trying to give you, because you’re desperate for something to help. This happens to me too often, because I have Trigeminal Neuralgia. If it gets to the point of me going to the ER, it’s because my pain is off the charts and nothing I’m prescribed is helping. I’m already prescribed Morphine Extended Release and Dilaudid Immediate Release, if I’m going to the ER, it’s cause my opiates already haven’t helped. The hospital in my moms town found out through trial and error with me, that a bolus of Ketamine is the only thing that always works to end the pain cycle and bring me out of an attack. But none of the hospitals where I live will treat me with it. They won’t even give me IV pain meds beyond Tramadol (which is literally nothing compared to what I already take at home). On Sunday, that’s what happened. The doctor asked what treatment works for me, seemed to agree and walked away, then the nurse came in and said they were giving me Benadryl and Haldol…I asked if I could speak with the dr before being given that, 30 min later they came in to say the doctor said the only other thing he’d give me is Tramadol, I asked again if I could speak to him, returned 20 minutes later saying he was too busy (the ER wasn’t packed at all, there was hardly anyone there…) and that if I’m in that much pain I would just take what they’re giving. And I said okay, because I was in too much pain to wait any longer or to continue to advocate for myself… and it brought my pain down from maxed out on the charts to maybe a 9 and I went home to continue to fight through the pain they didn’t help with. The next day, I ended up back at another ER because I started having strange facial contractions that I literally couldn’t control, pulling my jaw from side to side and making weird faces without being able to stop it. Turned out it was something called “Extrapyramidal Symptoms”, basically a very rare type of allergic reaction to antipsychotics like the Haldol that they gave me at the ER the night before..
Then wisest thing I was ever told in a hospital by a nurse: you come to a hospital to get treated, but you go home to get better. This after I complained about being woken up several times the night by folks checking on me or to do blood draws. She was absolutely right, and made me stop and think about it. I have never complained again about being woken up at the hospital.
As a new nurse I will be stealing this, thank you!
Retired R.N. here: Nurses do it with style!
If I don't sleep I got very bad headaches (vomit, dizziness, light sensitivity...) so I complained about being woken up several times the night by nurses checking on me and I explained my condition. Because, I will have two problems to face (the one i am at the hospital for and horrible headache)and that isn't make me go better. Please, Let patients time to rest it's important even at hospital.
@@Rachel-qr8kv I don't think nurses come and wake you up in the middle of the night to be annoying. If they're running some tests at specific hours, there's a reason.
We don’t wake you up because we feel like it lol. We do it to make sure we’re taking care of you in the best way possible. You could have a complication in the middle of the night and we wouldn’t know it unless we woke you up for assessment.
I had a seizure and fell off a train platform, and I kept telling the doctors and nurses I was in pain. The doctor actually discharged me at 2 am. I refused to leave, the doctor said he would have security remove me. I waited in the waiting room for an administrator to arrive, explained what happened, and she readmitted me and ordered an MRI. That's when they discovered my pelvis was fractured in front and back. When you have a degenerative musculoskeletal disorder and have a fall, the ER staff should always make sure you can walk unassisted and be able to go to the bathroom before they discharge you. If you can't do either, they should not be discharging you.
exact same thing happened to me. I was in a car accident when I was 2 years old and my parents begged the doctors for almost 3 days straight that something was wrong. They continued to discharge me every single time. I got an MRI and Cat scan and then it showed I had a hairline fracture in my neck.
If you fell they should have done imaging regardless.
@@chimaer3743 disgusting behavior
Agreed.
Similar hospital experiences here too, Doctor’s Mike advice should not be treated as the bible and followed 100%. His advice is assuming everything goes perfectly in his ideal scenario when reality is far from that. Doctors are humans too and some simply became one only for the money, not because they care about their patients and will get lazy at times
Doctor Mike opening fan mail is like watching a child open gifts on Christmas, such a joy to watch! And Bear is so sweet with him, truly makes my heart happy 😃
Doctor Mike opening fan mail is like watching a child open gifts on Christmas, such a joy to watch! And Bear is so sweet with him, truly makes my heart happy 😃
@@Theunicorn2012u just copied exactly what the above said 🫥
Bear is so sweet... literally spits in Mike's mouth 🤣🤣
ADVOCATE FOR YOURSELF. I was in hospital after surgery for a collapsed lung, and I was given pain medication. I reacted terribly to this pain medication (e.g. hallucinations, vomiting etc which is incredibly painful with a tube in your chest) so the pain specialist put in my record that I was to not have this drug again. One day later, a nurse came in with pain meds and told me to take them. I asked what it was, and they were like “oh your pain meds”. So I was about to take them when I noticed it looked like the drug I reacted to. After arguing with the nurse and her telling me to stop worrying and take it, she finally consulted another nurse who confirmed my suspicion
Her not telling you what the meds are called is a massive red flag! ...
Where I go they always tell you the name of each drug they are giving you. And they try to split them in to separate pots so you can easily leave one for later or refuse a specific one...
My kidneys were removed in 2001. When I was in hospital a few months down the track, the nurse came in with a spec jar. I asked her why, and she said "you can't have your ultrasound until you urinate into the jar." I argued with her for 5 minutes (and ended up angry crying) about how I had no kidneys so I couldn't pee. The nurse left to check and never came back
😁
I received a transplant in 2005.
They once gave me the wrong medication 🙃 I told the nurse that it was different from my usual treatment, she insisted so much I took it at the end.
I was sick all night.
Wow! Horrible experience!
What country did this happen in? It sounds like typical NHS England treatment, but at the same time I'm not slating the nurses who are totally understaffed, poor handovers and consultants who see you as a bag of flesh, in my experience. Yet there are some dedicated. caring doctors out there, I've met many but not been treated by many.
"never be a afraid to advocate for yourself or your loved one"
Absolutely. 100%. Even with some seemingly trivial issues. My daughter had a stomach infection when she was 1 year old. After arguing with the OOH doctor to get an appointment (kids only ever fall sick at the weekend/holidays) because she was getting worse after a day and a half, we saw a GP. She took one look at my baby and called an ambulance completely unresponsive. She was in PICU for 3 days and it was found that she has beta-ketothiolase deficiency, which is a unicorn-level rare metabolic disorder. Knowing that something wasn't right and fighting for her to be seen saved her life. I will always be 'that mum', but I'll also bring cake for the staff, so I'm not all bad!
You absolutely did the right thing. Parents (in this case, mothers) have a sixth sense when it comes to their children, and this is heightened when they are sick. Do not let any health care practitioner write you off; you know your child better than anyone. I hope your daughter is doing loads better and thriving as we speak. You being 'that mum' is necessary in order to get the type of care that patients need. Keep speaking up and doing what needs to be done. Also, I think you the staff definitely loved that cake. It's a good feeling to be appreciated, I know the staff empathized with you (stress is a constant companion for either party in the health care setting). Take care, and I wish you and your daughter all the best!
When my mom was in the hospital for the last time, I made sure to bring treats for the nurses each day I went in the hopes it would make them pay more attention to her during her stay. It worked.
Something similar happened to my sibling. They were 8 and had atypical symptoms of appendicitis. They had on and off severe stomach pain and would scream. My parents took them to multiple Dr’s offices and multiple trips to the ER. They always sent them home. Finally a ER doctor did an ultrasound and saw her appendix about to rupture. She was rushed to immediate surgery and it burst in the doctors hand. If one of the doctors did a exam, a blood tests they would have seen it earlier. They spent almost a month in the hospital and another 2-3 weeks at home Bedford they could go back to school.
I pray she's doing well. God bless you and your family 💕
@@shirahime23 They don't always have it unfortunately. My parents knew a couple who had a daughter who complained a lot about headaches but not too much, just regularly. They brushed it off. She had a leucemia and died at the age of ten.
In 2020, I was in the hospital for open-heart bypass surgery. The nurses were absolutely amazing, and I told them such. Nurses are truly the hardest working professionals in medicine. I always thank them.
I also showed the same respect for the people who came in to mop the floors. Everyone in that building deserves respect
Dude custodial staff literally make hospitals possible, it took covid for that to be highlighted to me
Did that in November of 2019.
Yeah, the nurses were great.
I feel like the janitorial staff deserves extra respect. A lot of the time, that is the best job they can get, and the pay isn’t super great. They work around everyone, sometimes in really awkward situations, and clean up all sorts of disgusting messes. Yet they are generally some of the most reliable staff.
When I have to go to a hospital I get a strong feeling it's assumed I'm a drug addict or have an eating disorder. You kind of hope for a doctor that can distinguish between those things. But really. How do you get feedback from something like that.
In 2020, I was in the hospital for open-heart bypass surgery. The nurses were absolutely amazing, and I told them such. Nurses are truly the hardest working professionals in medicine. I always thank them. I also showed the same respect for the people who came in to mop the floors. Everyone in that building deserves respect
End of Life Convo is a big one!! I've been a big advocate for palliative care for years and years - I even gave an end-of-life and palliative care presentation at my community college in my early 20s just because I was so passionate about it.
Don't be afraid to have these conversations!! My grandmother told me I was the only family member who ever asked her about her wishes when she was 86 years old. There's a reason she made me her Power of Attorney. When she ended up in the hospital for something that seemed routine? Turns out it wasn't -- and it took them a couple of weeks to recognize that! I had to advocate hard for her comfort, but I knew what she was willing to endure and where her stopping point was because I'd talked to her about it.
DON'T WAIT TO HAVE THESE CONVERSATIONS.
The IV one is one we get all the time on the ambulance. "I'd rather have a doctor start my IV." Trust me, no no you wouldn't. I start IVs every day in a box bumping down the road at 40 miles an hour. I know doctors who have barely started an IV since med school. Docs are wonderful and they do so much but there are somethings that those of us who do them every day are going to be better at and IVs are one for sure.
Good point! My husband is both a paramedic and ER nurse. He’s told me about doing an IV in an ambulance in traffic. I’m impressed by the skills nurses and EMS workers have.
Agreed. Easiest IV I've ever had was started in the back of an ambulance on a bumpy highway. Went right in first try, didn't feel a thing.
@@phaedrapage4217Same. It's hard to get an IV in me. The last one I had required a special needle for newborns and went at my thumb. It was the only place they could get it. Forget shingles, this was way more painful. If someone could put an IV in me while a truck drives, and I didn't know it, that's some serious skill. Nurses are amazing. If I know of a nurse who can tend to my really stubborn veins, I'll go out of my way to have them draw it. Even if it's a $50 UBER ride. They will have praises sang about them to everyone.
The IV one is one we get all the time on the ambulance: "I'd rather have a doctor start my IV." Trust me, no no you wouldn't. I start IVs every day in a box bumping down the road at 40 miles an hour. I know doctors who have barely started an IV since med school. Docs are wonderful and they do so much but there are sometimes that those of us who do them every day are going to be better at and IVs are one for sure.
I have small veins, and IVs are a challenge. RNs get them in fast!
I've shared this before and I will continue sharing it: ALWAYS advocate for yourself! I went to the ER thinking I had appendicitis, doctor asked if I could be pregnant (nope, thank you social distancing), did the abdomen exam, determined I did not have appendicitis and tried to send me home. When I pushed for the CT scan, he said I probably had gastritis, and I probably wouldn't get scanned until 3 or 4 am (it was around 8 pm at that point). I told him I would wait for the scan. Got scanned around 11:30 pm, scan showed I had an abscess in my small intestine. I ended up getting admitted, and further tests and procedures diagnosed me with Crohn's Disease and sepsis. During my follow-up with my PCP, she told me she saw the scan and estimated I was about 48 hours away from medical emergency, and praised me for trusting my body and advocating for myself. (For what it's worth, the ER doctor did apologize for not believing me when he discussed the scan results with me.)
It took 3 ER visits before I was admitted! I felt like I was lying but at least 2 doctors insisted on a lumbar puncture and I was admitted
I wish there was a more universal “believe the patient until you can PROVE otherwise” instead of the “it’s probably not a big deal” until you come into the ER with an immediate life threatening situation. Not just at the ER but with all doctors.
At least the guy who made the mistake recognized it and apologized.
@@C1975-t7p I mean, immediate life threatening situations are kind of the entire point of an ER. Anything else should be seen by urgent care or at a doctors office. People will often go to an ER with any medical issue but they can't really do anything for you outside of acute emergencies.
@@iz2333it's impossible to get into a normal doctor office these days. A GP is scheduled like a specialist.
I love how Mike gets to the point, he doesn't take long explaining each number. And your fans brought you some pretty cool stuff, glad that they make you happy
I don't understand what's wrong with quiet?
@@SetiKt patients die in the hospital or have freakouts, it could get loud so that's why it's wrong to tell a staff to have a quiet shift
@@SetiKt it's more of "wishing the staff a quiet shift"
jinx means the extremely opposite end ends up happening.
Sounded like a superstition that mentioning "quiet" is a jinx, which means it will be extremely "loud" and busy, and hectic, and a mess, etc
Ah i see. I never got admitted on the hospital, so i didn't know. Thank you for explaining.
@@SetiKt I've been in a hospital before but there was never loud noises
Around 13 years ago I was brought to the ER from home. I was having a massive GI bleed. After banding it blew out again and they did TIPPS. I lost A LOT of blood I received 12 bags of blood and two bags of platelets. I had worked in the ER and i’ve never seen anyone throw up so much blood before. So this did scare me about five or six days after the event I was starting to eat, but was so weak that I couldn’t yet walk at all much less take care of myself at home. The G.I. doctor wanted to send me straight from the ICU to home even though I couldn’t walk she said she needed the bed. I really couldn’t believe this. The other GI doctor stepped back and mouthed to me “I’ll be back” Thank God he fixed everything. PT got sent to me and evaluated me. I got to stay about 48 more hours . I got stronger and able to go up a flight of stairs. This all surprised me. This was at a top hospital in Boston.
Thank you Dr Field Willingham. We miss you much ❤
That’s crazy man 🫡 you’re a true warrior
I'm so glad I live in a country where you don't have to worry about money when you are in a medical emergency. My mother had an air ambulance literally across country - a flight that lasted for hours, with her own nurse to care for her, ambulance ready to take her to her doorstep, painkillers and physiotherapy later for the grand ol' price of 0$. 🇧🇻🇧🇻🇧🇻
That is how it should be. We have trillions of dollars and great economy. Everyone should pay little for national health care 💯💯,. It's not communism or socialism. I am from india. Government having some control over medicines and equipment pricing is necessary so that companies don't make billions while people are in debt and die. Check U.S on other side. It's horrible and mind-boggling.
I am thankful I do also
Same here. Yay Denmark.
Just sad we have a nurse-and-hospital-crew shortage currently and for like, the last few years now.
@@ridhamh2966 I’m glad India has cheap healthcare considering all the air pollution, water pollution, and open defecation over there :)
Unfortunately, we in the U.S. do not have that luxury… 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
After my surgeon sent me home with a punctured colon, I ended up back in the hospital with sepsis. Had emergency surgery and spent 2 months in the hospital. Let me tell you, patience, manners, being friendly, and saying please and thank you go a LONG way with all staff.
Is that supposed to mean your sepsis was caused by no manners
100% on advocating for yourself and your family/friends. I remember a few years ago my uncle was dying in hospital and needed to have a scan done, and was told he could have nothing to eat or drink until the scan. I arrived after his lunch had and he was so hungry and thirsty, but waited patiently. A junior nurse came in to give him medicine, and left before my uncle took it, and I stopped my uncle from taking it. Chasing the nurse down I asked if my uncle could have the medicine if he wasn’t allowed to have anything to eat or drink, and after checking with another nurse, it turns out that because he had lunch delivered it was assumed he had eaten and got knocked back on the wait list. I told them he hadn’t had anything waiting for the scan, and provided he didn’t take the medicine (he didn’t) he was bumped up the list. If I hadn’t stopped and talked on my uncle’s behalf, I hate to think of how long he would’ve waited to be seen…
smh, miscommunication in a hospital with stuff like that is awful !!!!
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Just FYI, some meds are OK take if NPO ( nothing by mouth). Pt can have orders that say NPO except for meds, because some of those meds are important and should be missed due to a potential scan
Been there done that. I was diabetic while pregnant and after my daughter was born I had to be NPO to get my tubes tied. She was born after midnight and I was scheduled for surgery at 7 am so they wouldn't even let me have water after giving birth. Fine, let's just get this done. Except the surgeon was late and decided to get his morning clinic out of the way first. Then that ran late too. He visited me on his lunch break to explain the delay and had the nerve to eat in front of me. I don't begrudge a busy doctor his lunch, but with the smell of chicken swamping the room, I was hard pressed not to snatch it from him. I hadn't had anything to eat or drink since noon the previous day, and was breast feeding my newborn. The nursery expressed concern that my daughter's blood sugar was low and they couldn't figure out why. Duh, my sugar is low too; I wonder why!
Finally at 5:30 pm they wheeled me to surgery, where the anesthetist and the rest of the team were already half an hour into overtime and...the surgeon calls to say he's running later than planned. My last conscious memory is of the anesthetist cursing at the doctor.
I ended up back in my room after 9 pm. The cafeteria was closed, so the nurses put together a meal from the vending machines--a turkey sandwich, jello, cookies, pudding, and a cola. For a diabetic. Then they had the nerve to be surprised when my sugar went way up. Fed my baby again, and the nursery reported with surprise that her blood sugar also went up. I just wanted to scream in frustration at the lack of understanding something as common as diabetes.
Yesss same thing happened to my mother too she was literally starving the whole day it didn't just happen once but 3 times if im not mistaken 😤
Also speak up when you enter into an emergency room if you don't feel right. I went into the ER due to a bad toe infection. But for the past couple of days I had a bad pain in my left shoulder blade. They triaged me and I did tell them about the pain but they were incredibly busy. I waited there for over three hours and I kept feeling worse but I figured I should just go home because I didn't want to be a bother. Just as I was about to walk out they called me back. When they listened to my chest they realized I was having a heart attack. They placed three stents that day. I wouldn't have lived if I had went home.
Advocating for loved ones is a must. Just last year I had to actively fight with a doctor about not discharging my father too early from his knee replacement. He didn't react well to the nerve block, so what was supposed to be pretty painless was agony for him. I had to raise my voice and tell them there was no way in hell I could get him into the house in his condition. He couldn't stand, and had anesthesia complications that ended up keeping him for a week.
Only other time we had to aggressively advocate was for my grandmother. Long story short she had the extremely rare side effect of Cipro that caused her to have psychotic episodes including aggression and 24/7 hallucinations. The doctors tried to ship her off to an insane asylum, but we did research into it and found out it was a known complication. Forced the doctor to take her off it, and 48 hours later she was back to her old self with no memory of the week-long psychotic episode. That doctor avoided us like the dang plague!
That’s actually horrible. It’s scary that some doctors would immediately assume somebody’s insane because they’re not acting normally under meds.
@Gail Asprey It was really scary!
I was only a kid (10ish) at the time and it was 20 years ago, but it made me really worry about any medication that had psychological side effects listed even if it's very rare. And more likely to question a doctor when I have my own theories/concerns.
Also, interesting tidbit - pretty sure Cipro and related drugs were black labeled then taken off the market for those severe but rare side effects
and a tip mike gave was to let doctors let you leave early
Went into the ER for Hepatic Encephalopathy. Woke up from an induced coma and was in the hospital for two weeks.
Well they discharged me but that day I wasn't feeling good. I couldn't honestly pin point it but I just knew my body wasn't right.
Two days later I go in because I haven't used the bathroom and I was incredibly thirsty. Turns out my kidneys were failing the entire time I was in the hospital- from the combination of HE, INDUCED, and the fact they kept putting off a paracentesis which I desperately needed.
Maybe if I spoke up sooner I would still have my kidneys. Back then i just thought I was feeling that way due to me dying feom my liver and being in bed all day.
I'm hoping the doctor felt some self-awareness of their F up
I was caregiver for my mom and one of the biggest headaches was keeping track of her meds as they would change often. So being the computer nerd I am I created a spreadsheet with my mom's info, the date the list was updated, contacts in an emergency, allergic reactions, list of medicines showing generic and commercial names, dosage, how many times a day, when she started on the medication, who prescribed it and for what, and OTC (over the counter meds, vitamins, etc). I'd bring a copy along to every doctor appointment, urgent care visit, ER visit, and I made a lot of nurses and doctors very happy it seems by having all of that in one place and easy to read. I also uploaded it to cloud storage so if I didn't happen to have a printout with me I could get online and show it to the doctor or nurse.
I keep one for myself as well. All of my diagnoses, what year I was diagnosed, all meds and times taken, all allergies, all surgery history, all doctors and specialists I see including their office numbers.
So many health care workers have thanked me for providing this, I wish all chronically ill people would do this for themselves and their caregivers.
Have you considered putting it on a USB-connected medical bracelet for when you can't be bedside immediately?
Yes that is a dream for us nurses! Also lets us know that patient is being really cared for by their caregivers bc they're on top of stuff.
It's great that you did that but really sad that you have to do this. No person without medical training should be expected to keep track of an elderly persons medications. Might be regional differences but that would be her GPs job where I live.
@@iz2333 When someone is seeing 5 or 6 different doctors mistakes can happen if the patient (or caregiver) doesn't keep up with what medications are being taken.
Love the "end of life" suggestion. My mom recently passed, but fortunately, she'd seen an attorney and her end-of-life instructions written down in a folder. We were able to find everything we need and pass it on to her medical staff. (She basically had a DNR and the hospital staff respected it.) Made things so much easier for her and for us.
I'm sorry for your loss.
im so sorry :(
Sorry for your loss and hope you guys are doing well
sorry for your loss, hope the good memories comfort you. She's always with you.
I'm so sorry for your loss. I'm glad that at least your family did not have to worry about what to do. How thoughtful of your mother! In May, my mother went into the hospital, it looked real bad for a few weeks, and we had to have this conversion. It was rough for us kids, but thankfully she had pre-planned a lot of the medical stuff. She recovered enough to come home, and now she and my father are planning their end-of-life finances.
Thoughtful parents like that make the grief less stressful. We need to grieve our loss, not worry about legalities.
The prescription segment is very true. My grandpa had been admitted to the ER when we had call paramedics. His eyes rolled into the back of his head. It occurred from his medications. The ER doctor in charge that night was irritated at his physician for not double checking with a solid follow up. That ER doctor didn’t mean to be irritated, he just wished all primary doctors would do a 100% follow up instead of going with partial insight from the patient and ask family members for their observation when they tag along to help them.
The end of life is also a must for discussion. It helped a lot with my grandpa, thankfully he’s still here. He said DNR/no cpr. It was Tough to deal with. I didn’t get angry, but he’s been tough as nails for as long as I can remember. It was seeing how frail he’s become that bothered me after losing my grandma and aunt. I came to the conclusion that they do wish to be pain again, so we must ensure their wishes are carried out no matter how bad it hurts.
CPR is brutal, I am middle aged but I don't think I would consent given the choice.
One of my dad's coworker died because he left the hospital against the doctors' advice. Dude was super super workaholic and had a heart attack in the office, was taken to a hospital, and when he started feeling better he insisted that he had to back to work. Literally everyone told him it's a bad idea, he wanted to go anyway and iirc he had a second heart attack on the way there and died.
Dude was super super smooth brain is what he was.
Imagine being such a slave to your work hours that you force yourself to death cause you were too desperate to get back to earning money for your boss wowzers. 🤦♂️
@@Loctorak That's a serious problem, actually. Probably shouldn't be passed off as just "smooth brain".
Love your pfp!
Being a workaholic is probably what caused his first heart attack. Stress and no rest.
One time, my mom and sister took our father to the hospital because he was in pain and vomiting (I wasn't there so I am not sure exactly what other things were going on). When they got him to the hospital a staff member said he was obviously just too drunk because he was vomiting and couldn't stand on his own and told us to wait for him to be seen. My mom and sister had to make a scene just to get attention because they knew he had not had anything to drink but the staff did not believe them. Luckily they managed to get someone's attention and he got in. Turns out it was a brain aneurysm. Also we were lucky that he survived it. I know hospital staff are busy people with lots of people to take care of, but to just disregard someone because you think the symptoms they are showing makes them look drunk even when people said they are not, is not right.
Doctors and Nurses go through lots of trouble, but hopefully this sort of stuff doesn't happen in the near future
sorry that happened
WOW, there could have been a terrible outcome in that situation.
Sorry that happened sweetheart and im glad your daddy is okay
I will never trust a doctor or nurse or anybody that can diagnose someone just by looking for 5 seconds at various obvious-visual cues.
That's like me telling you that your car's engine dun work well just cuz I smell burnt rubber, there's a damage to the car and it has issues starting.
It can literally as well be the battery, the fuel, etc. etc. instead.
Patient contribution: Don’t get mad when you hear that person at 3am screaming like a wild hyena. They are most likely in unimaginable pain or discomfort. Imagine how you’d feel in that position, knowing people are getting angry for something you can’t control…It sucks that it keeps you up, but you’re not the only one there with medical problems.
when i was in hospital like two years ago when i was 13 or sum, there was an about nine- year old kid in one of the rooms next to me who was crying very loudly. The nurse explained to me that the kid had a broken leg and wasnt allowed to move for days, laying in a very uncomfortable position. And even though i couldnt sleep, i felt bad for them and didnt complain. Cant imagine the pain and discomfort that poor kid had to go through :(
@@austr1an.err0rmessage96 Wow, that definitely sucks. I hope you’re doing better and you’re out of the hospital now.
I never got yelled at by fellow patients, but I've often (!) been told by doctors "I know you're in pain, but please don't scream. Patients are trying to sleep". Like... yo? You know I'm in a huge amount of pain (even during kidney stones that needed surgery I was told this!), and still you have the nerve to tell me this? 🤨
@@ChibiYotsuba everyone is in pain int the hospital. the doctors need to comfort other patients too dude. he is not wrong, you are not wrong too but it is common sense. everyone is in hospital, not some hotel.
@@ChibiYotsuba When I had surgery to get 6 inches of my intestines removed, I was in a room next to a kid who had some kind of surgery as well. He was also clearly mentally disabled, but nevertheless, he was in pain. Every night he’d start yelling at the top of his lungs. Even though I knew he was in pain, the doctors and nurses always said “Calm down, don’t scream! People are trying to get their rest.” And at first I was like, “Dude? He’s obviously in pain here.” And then after I myself had started feeling my surgery more, I realized how important sleep is in the recovery process. It’s annoying being told that, but to an extent I can understand. I was in the hospital for over 7 days due to complications. And I barely got any sleep. (Sorry for the paragraph)
Dude, them stickers are AMAZING!
My tip: DO NOT STAND in front of an elevator door. You never know if a coding patient needs to get out. I don't know how many times I've been in the employee elevator (I understand visitors don't get this) and, when the doors open, I am face to face with someone trying to get in meaning I can't get out. C'mon people!
4:45 My mom has been a registered nurse for 25 years, before becoming an RN, she worked as a traveling phlebotomist, collecting blood for testing from patients at home. She knows how to handle needles. A few years back, a young doctor got angry at her for not being able to draw a patients blood, so my mom told the doctor to take the blood themself. The doctor barely knew the process of taking blood to begin with and ended up flustered, not able to do it.
Cool
I love phlebotomists.
That doctor is crazy! I have always had most luck with nurses who were older drawing my blood, or just ones who have worked a good amount of years. I have dealt with multiple jabs and bruises all around, and I do not mind AT ALL, I can take the slight pain and don't care about the bruising. I just look away because the sight of blood or poking me makes me dizzy, but it does not hurt bad of course. But I have noticed a difference. I had two doctors, one who was younger but still in his 40s and one who was in his 60s both not be able to hit a vein. These are the docs who tried. Most experienced nurses have been able to (and a young looking lady from Quest got it right on the spot).
Here in Alberta, when they try to insert a needle into a vein they get three tries and then must get someone else.
I could see why the dr would be unamused by not being able to get it done when thats primarily your job but ami guess the person must have bled out allot or had a severe water shortage for it to be that difficult for a specialist and that would make it understandable
The point about leaving against medical advice is absolutely spot on!
I was admitted a few years ago with a cat bite that had gone right through my hand. I had had it cleaned, a good dose of antibiotics and a tetanus shot but they wanted to keep me in anyway with my hand strapped above my head. However, I decided I couldn't be bothered to hang around all night and it was silly keeping me in for a cat bite - I felt like I was taking up a much needed bed, so I discharged myself.
Within 12 hrs I was re-admitted with sepsis and needed adrenaline. Had I stayed, all of that could have been headed off in advance and I wouldn't have needed to stay as long as I did. Ultimately, my poor decision almost cost me my life and cost the already crippled NHS far more money than it should have.
I see your point. However even tho it didn't turn out the best your decision was respected 💯
What kind of cat bit you so hard that it went through your hand?
@@alejandromedrano7986 it's acc very possible. Cats a very powerful
@@alejandromedrano7986 my last cat bit the vet right through the bite protection glove. After that I was only allowed to bring her in a special cage that allowed them to push her to one side, so they could sedate her without danger to themselves
My cat was a traumatised cat who was rescued from an animal abuse situation, and she was terrified of strangers and unfamiliar places. I only went to the vet if it was necessary and let them do all other checks and vaccines while she was under anesthesia.
I had the same thing but my doctor convinced me to stay. A really sick person was admitted to the other bed. I felt like an idiot.
As a nurse working in a hospital, I can verify pretty much all the points in here. When it comes to jewelry, our hospital has a locked box next to each bed and only nurse has a key. Even still, we are very careful and ask patients to pass jewelry and valuables to relatives so they would be more secure.
I would also add a point "Do not rush the staff for whatever reason." I see many patients and relatives trying rush medications, treatments and scans immediadly while the staff is trying to sort things out with the best of their abilities. We are all doing our best and sometimes waiting sucks and there's not a single day when I don't apologize for the wait time especially if there's an emergency going on in another room. It's alright to remind but wrong to demand instant service.
Agreed
the only time i’ve ever wanted to rush a nurse was to get more sick bowls when i had appendicitis, because i was GOING to throw up, and didn’t want to create a harder job by puking on the floor. however, i felt too bad and like there was probably someone in a worse state, so i tried not to puke. i…completely failed and felt awful
Just wanna say thank you for what you do daily at work. You deal with the worst and sickest of us and usually get no thanks or respect (or not enough). Our medical systems would crumble in minutes without you all and people need to know that.
Sorry for the novel, I just have unending respect for what you do 💜
I had to calm my mom down when it took the ER staff over an hour to get me an prescription. I knew they were short staff, and it didn't help that it was during their shift change.
My only time at the ER had a total wait time of 7 hours (with a few 10-15 minute examinations in between).
I only heard 3 hours in they had a major highway accident coming in during that time, with a second one later. I was cold, in pain and tired, but I understood I wasn't a priority at the time and they were doing their darnest to help everyone.
When i had my C-section, they discharged me in just under 24 hours and i wasn't ready at all. Despite not being able to walk without help and just generally not feeling good, they insisted i was fine.
I was rushed in 13 hours later with an infection. I knew i wasn't ready and i was treated like an inconvenience.
I worked as a kennel attendant in a vet and the “don’t say quiet” rule was followed. My coworker came in during my shift and asked how the morning was. I just responded, “I don’t wanna jinx it.” I left a few hours later and had the weekend off so hopefully a bullet was dodged
Even if you say "Uneventful", it'll jinx anyway?
If you believe in "jinx" you should not be a doctor ;)
@@PROVOCATEURSK ok?
@@PROVOCATEURSK bro why, just let them be a doctor- you mf-
I work in a nursery and someone once dared say "Have a quiet lunch" when it was my turn to watch over the children during lunchtime.
I don't think those kids have ever misbehaved more than they did that day
To add to the rule of lieing and asking questions
if there is ANY drug abuse history in your life you should disclose that
There was a man who was addicted to heroin
Over 30 years before getting injured and because he didn't tell them he was given medication that restarted his addiction and slowly ruined his life
Unless you smoke cannabis once a year in norway, because they will take your drivers license..
@@avlinrbdig5715 you should probably still tell them because I'd rather live and have no driving licence
Then die and still have it
@@PhantomOfFire sure, bro.. you go do that in the middle of nowhere and lose your job. See how your health improves. Lmfao
@@avlinrbdig5715 okay but it's that or actual possibility of death or illness or addiction
@@PhantomOfFire man.. your phrasing is so dramatic you should win a prize bro
Hey Mike, I got to "Dont bring medicine from home" and laughed because I was getting really sick in the hospital when I went in for stomach issues (ending up getting a Cholecystectomy done) but I was forced to stay in the hospital another night because the nurses/doctors kept screwing up my insulin intake. They were giving me something crazy like .5 units an hour when in regality I needed roughly 2.5 units an hour. so my blood sugar went skyhigh and they wouldnt lower it. They Delayed my surgery by a day and my parents and I signed documents to allow myself to use my own medical device.
Hectic. Messing up your blood glucose levels just before an operation! In cases like yours or with some chronic medication, I feel it might be better to have your own meds with you.
One time I went in for a Thrombectomy (thanks PILL for making my ArterioVenous fistula need 3 Thrombectomies one after another), and the Anesthetist asked me if it was ok to give me Morphine during surgery, even when my notes clearly highlight (on a fluro sticker no less) that I have a 'MORPHINE ALLERGY.' Obviously I refused.
I hate to break it to you, SOME hospitals will do it on PURPOSE.
I have see patients say I'm supposed to be on 2 beta blockers, _____&______, and the nurses and doctors ignore them, give them the carbon copy protocol they give everyone else, won't allow the patients regular Dr to intervene because he is "out of network" and after 4 ADDITIONAL unnecessary days of being in the hospital, they finally decided to listen to the patient, Then vital signs become normal, everything is going well, and the patient is discharged the next day! I've also seen it with glucose and metformin, the hospital changes the usual meds the patient has been on for years and suddenly, blood sugar is so high, they end up giving them D50!! Again, their doctor cannot intervene because he is out of network, or is not on their payroll, and they ignore the patients constantly telling them. I say, bring your own meds, if they try to change anything that is working well for you just so they can make $$$, sign your self out AMA, and find another hospital.
Here's a fun one: I was on hefty pain meds for multiple chronic issues for years. When I went to hospital for severe pancreatitis and cholecystectomy, the surgeon of all people decided to abruptly discontinue the meds I was on and give me a completely different medication for pain. No reason (I asked), no consulting with my prescribing doctor, he just liked the other medication better. WTH? Not only was this jarring for my body and my pain, the other medication didn't work half as well at a time when pancreatitis dramatically added to my pain levels. Thankfully the internist listened to me when he did rounds and switched me back. I have seen staff make mistakes, make flatly stupid decisions before, but that one takes the cake.
Funnily enough, a patient with a medical issue they regularly know how to deal with, knows more than their doctors... well it's not really that strange when you think about it.
The phlebotomists are usually the very best people to do blood draws. It’s literally what they do all day long. I was in ICU for Diabetic Ketoacidosis, and they were having to draw my blood every two hours from my hand. This is the most painful spot to do it, but these technicians were phenomenal. The nurses that started my IV’s were fanstastic, too. They are the ones that take primary care of you, they are the ones that really know what’s going on. I was there three days, and I think I saw the docs about three or four times once I was admitted. The nurses were there constantly! They really are fantastic, and don’t get nearly enough credit!
Always ADVOCATE! As someone with multiple chronic illnesses, unfortunately I spend a lot of time in hospital for often weeks at a time, multiple times per year. Not only do I myself try my best to keep track of my condition, diet, medication, treatment and recovery, I also ALWAYS have a designated family member keeping track too. This is SO IMPORTANT. Sometimes we aren’t strong enough to monitor everything happening around us, which is why having a second person following things is so useful. Prime example… I have a penicillin allergy and was once given a drug containing it accidentally. If my sister hadn’t been there to stop the insistent nurse from hanging the medication refill, my allergic reaction would no doubt have been a lot worse.
About leaving early: What if they discharge people before it is safe to do so? I was once in urgent care and extremely disoriented, they told me they gave me some sort of pain reliever or something I think, which made me dizzy too. My memory is really hazy because of how out of it I was, I just remember them asking if I felt better, I told them I was dizzy, and next thing I remember I was somehow waking up at home, but I have no recollection of how I got there. I was clearly in no state to be discharged and shudder to think what could have happened or even did happen in that blank space between telling the hospital I felt worse and arriving home.
I have heard many similar stories from others in my area of being discharged earlier than safe for a variety of reasons, be they disorented and alone, or physically impaired and unable to get themselves home, or at risk of harming themselves or others, etc. (SW Ontario). Thoughts on this kind of thing happening?
I'm not sure how it is elsewhere, but we are not permitted to physically restrain anyone. Even if they are a risk to themselves or others, we gave to call I the police. We had someone brought up under an EEA and the police asked what would happen if they tried to leave, our answer was we call the police and they follow them up. We've had people essentially forced to self discharge with family or partners under less than ideal circumstances. All we can do is document what has occurred.
I think Mike has covered it, by saying if it isn't necesery for you to stay in hospital. I think in this scenerio you shouldn't left the hospital.
@@deconstructor3582 You seem to have missed my point. They discharged me, despite my needing medical care. I should not have gone home as early as did, that was a decision the hospital made while I was unable to make decisions.
@Heather Garnham I did not mention anyone being physically restrained, what I am referring to is the hospital discharging people who are in no state to care for themselves, into nobody's care, including people who are at risk of harming themselves or others.
@@Maggie.The.Unicorn I hear what you're saying. It seems like in this video that Dr. Mike is saying that doctors will not discharge you until it's safe, but you're right, the reality is that sometimes doctors try to discharge patients before it's actually safe for them to go (that happened to my sister not long ago). The way I see it is that safety is key, no matter which "side" you're on (patient or provider).
@@heathergarnham9555 especially being in canada... doctors don't seem to care as much because they aren't making money like the states.
I go to the clinic and within 2 minutes I'm being offered a prescription for something I probably don't need 🙃
6:04 This one rings so true to me. I'm usually staunchly opposed to going against someone I see as an authority figure (aka every staff member in an ER, etc). I had to take my mom to the ER once, she was in such incredible pain and they had her sitting in this little chair and going through this long process. She couldn't even hold still to get an accurate blood pressure reading, and the nurse was incredibly insensitive and started scolding my mom. Oh boy did my protective instincts come out 😅 I wasn't rude to the nurse, but I was firm and spoke louder and clearer and basically told her to give my poor mom space and be more sympathetic.
Turns out my mom was suffering from pancreatitus caused by gallstones/a stone stuck in her bile duct. I've been told (and seen in my mom) it's one of the most painful things you can experience.
Oh god yes that was one of the worst pains I've ever been in. I got it a couple months after delivering my son.
The pain got so bad that I couldn't even sit in the van we had and needed an ambulance to get me. Unfortunately the men in there were so rude and refused to listen to how lying down flat was incredibly painful, strapped my arms in to prevent me from sitting up, and yelled at me for screaming because the pain kept increasing the longer I was strapped in the ambulance. Once I got to one of the furthest hospitals from where we lived I was admitted, asked questions, and the next thing I knew I was out.
They told me I had pancreatitis and my gallbladder made a stone that sat perfectly at the entrance of my intestines and the bile back-up and swollen pancreas was what was causing my pain.
I'm still pissed at those ambulance people and annoyed that the doctors never warned me that my gallbladder removal would result in IBS (and therefore causing me years of never understanding why food caused so much pain) but I'm also glad that I hopefully will never have to go through that pain again.
God bless your mother for being alive and well through that. Hopefully her life has gotten better since then.
I'm glad you were there! I don't understand how someone can go into that professional not have compassion. I understand burnout and "having a bad day" but when people go to the ER they are often frightened. The staff have to be level headed about it.
I’ve had that and it is very painful
2:27 i’ve actually done this before for a stray cat because the dumpsters were about to be emptied.. she’s happy and healthy now, best cat i’ve ever had
as an EMT, I actually do advise patients to take their medications with them to the hospital, particularly if they take multiple medications and can’t possibly remember all the names and dosages. it helps so that the ER staff will easily have that full list of medications. of course, it would be on the ER staff to let any receiving providers know during a future handoff to avoid any double dosing or drug interactions.
At one point I was having a prescription medication compounded into a specific dose for me. I spent the night in hospital and told the nurse what I took, and explained they were compounded. She told the doctor on the phone and Dr didn’t believe her/me because the medication doesn’t come in that dose (… that’s the point of compounding). when my husband returned with my medication I was able to show her and she went and either showed or phoned the doctor to prove that I was right. Ridiculous.
it’s great to bring your medications with you (for all the reasons you said), just don’t take any without checking with the nurse or doctor first!
My Mom always kept an updated medication list in her purse, taped to the inside of the door where her meds were kept along with an extra copy or two (there were times she would only be home for maybe 3 or 4 days before we'd have to call an ambulance again.) This made sure that she always had one for EMTs when an emergency happened.
@@Insertia_Nameia That's so smart 😀
I have a list in my medicin box
My sister had to take a lot of meds. At first she didn't have them listed anywhere, and I told her we need to make some lists. It's important for the person taking them as well as emergencies. The times my sister was picked up to go to the hospital, I always had to give them all of her prescription meds & supplements to make note of before they left, and I always took the actual bags of meds with me when I followed them or went as soon as I could later to give to the nurses to double check they 1. Had all the meds & dosages correct & 2. Use what we had so that she didn't have to pay exorbitant hospital/insurance costs per pill & 3. Not be sent home with the same medicines that cost 10x more (that's only if they would, sometimes they "aren't allowed with their hospital policy"). It also gave me her meds in my purse or the list she kept with them (if they took them to use) so that when I visited I could double check with the nurses that were doing the dispensing that they were all being given still & see what had been added by the doctors, if they hadn't told me already (especially when I was her signed medical liaison for if/when she wasn't able to make decisions. I also advocated for her in telling the nurses & doctors how badly she felt when she didn't have certain meds at certain times or with/without at least a snack. Sometimes nurses won't know these things & they give the meds at diff times or without at least a snack & your loved one might vomit or at least get super nauseous & then they don't know it's not an allergic reaction or new symptom but just how your loved one's body responds to certain meds (especially those they have taken a long time... they know their body, but might not be able to tell someone). I myself don't have a lot of prescription meds but take quite a few supplements & I know some of them can interact with medicines so I always list them.
I just got home yesterday from an ER turned ICU 5 day stay in the hospital with my multiply disabled daughter. Happy to say I got so many of these things right. I’m glad you clarified medicines from home; my daughter has epilepsy and I will notice something being “off” when they change a med from one generic to another at the pharmacy and the hospital changed 3 all at once! While I understood that the ones in their system were easy to scan, it was too much for her and she had multiple scary big seizures on the third day there. A thoughtful respiratory therapist helped me advocate for my daughter and I stood my ground with nurses and doctors until they made scan codes for our home medications and used them they way we do at home. Her seizures stopped, she was safe. My heart was pounding speaking up, but ultimately, I’m glad I did.
Kudos for being a good advocate and parent!!!
I have a history of incredibly painful kidney stones. The doctor I was seeing in the ER thought I was drug seeking. He explained to me that he was a cop during the day, and doctor by night. He looked me up in their system that tells them the last time you've had a narcotic prescribed, saw it had been 6 weeks, then sent me on my way. Two days later, I was back, with a stone the size of a pencil eraser. I ended up with an incredible kidney infection, blood in my urine, and having to have lithotripsy. Sometimes it's no us.
A cop during the day and a doctor by night. I call BS. I’m so sorry you had to deal with that
LAWSUIT
Did you get better?!
That sounds really unbelievable ngl cause hospital doctors work like 12-14 hour days.
I went to the ER one night with an unbearably painful toothache. I was about to rip my own head off to make the pain stop. The doctor thought I was drug seeking. Mind you, I have no history of drug abuse whatsoever. He sent me home after refusing to help me in any way. I got into my dentist's office the next day on an emergency basis. By this time I was nearly delirious. I had a severe abscess which had spread to my jawbone and caused an infection in the bone. My dentist immediately gave me IV antibiotics, (and morphine) and told me that I would have been dead in a few days from a brain infection if I hadn't gotten treatment when I did. He called the ER at the hospital and screamed at them for 20 minutes about their refusal to treat me. I later called the hospital and told them that I would not be paying my bill, and if they wanted to pursue payment I would file a lawsuit. In hindsight I should have filed a lawsuit anyway
3:18 My black grandmother would try to get me to eat her food when she was admitted at the hospital to make it look like she ate her dinner or lunch or breakfast sometimes. Instead of this being the case, what usually happens at my local hospital is that they also tend to get people who are visiting lunch and food as well so that you have your own food and the person who is supposed to be admitted also gets food and they can track that that person's food intake more accurately because you're not mooching off their plate and vice versa. On a big plus when I was there with my mother one time me and her both got plates and I ended up giving more food to my mother and I told the nurses and they tracked it. They really do keep track of all the food, a person eats and drinks
I love how Doctor Mike tells us such informational stuff in such a humorous manner
With the medication thing, my grandmother had CBD gumies she used for her back (she has a really bad back) when she was in the hospital for a triple bypass and she thought she needed to sneak the medication in. so i talked to the doctor for her and he was able to print up a label for her gumies and get them for her. Almost all doctors will work with you if you just ask.
As a scandinavian, it's insane (and sad) to me that people have to be told "you can lower the cost of your hospital stay if you shop around :)". Healthcare is a basic human right and should be free (as it is here)
As a Brit, same
@@ep6600 But he said „if you NEED to use an air ambulance“. If you need one in Germany - where I live and where we have universal healthcare - you would not need to shop around since you will not have to pay for it. If you want to use one and there is no need for this means of transportation, you cannot use it and pay for it yourself because it is reserved for the patients that need it. So the use of an air ambulance is always free of charge in Germany - and most European countries as far as I know.
@@ep6600 Hey if you need to be transported by heli (or an ambulance plane for that matter), even in non-emergency cases, it is very much still free here
Sorry, but America's not a communist country (and never will be).
Canadian here. I would only “shop” around since the hospitals here in rural Alberta suck and there are some that are better than others. Plus the hospitals here are so under-staffed that you sometimes have to go to different hospitals to get care
I've never personally thought nurses were lesser than doctors, probably in part because one of the few things I remember of a hospital trip when I was six was there was a man in scrubs who was nice to me and made me feel a little less terrified (which is quite something, considering over-emotional six year old with a deep, bleeding head wound who would later go on to become a theatre kid), and I talked to Mum about what I thought of this man, and I called him a doctor to which Mum corrected me on that he was actually a nurse.
The other few things I recall with clarity are the medication process before the stitches where I think they tried to give me an oral medication but I was a stubborn little lad and outright refused, so they instead put it right up my nose where I distinctly recall firmly thinking "I am not going to swallow this." only for it to be swallowed anyways.
Oh, and the egg sandwich. Clearest thing I recall of that trip, being on a recovery bed and being given an egg sandwich which I greatly enjoyed and a red apple which sat in the backseat of the car for literal months :P
I definitely agree with the "advocate for yourself" one. I went to the dentist to get a cavity drilled, and they were planning on using nitrous on me to numb the pain a little. I told the nurse that I couldn't see my cavity in the mirror, and just wanted to make sure that there actually was a cavity. There was one, but they realized how small it was and decided not to do the nitrous. It saved me $100 and a lot of time. You should always ask questions before anything if you have a concern, it always works out for the better.
Are you sure it was nitrous and not novicane? Cuz novicane’s what numbs you.
@@Boundwithflame23 Pretty sure it said nitrous on the paper, but I'm not a doctor so it could've been that too
@@haydito1447 nitrous is laughing gas…you’d know if they gave you Novocaine (a needle) or nitrous (gas given with a mask with hoses, similar to an oxygen mask). I’m a wimp so I usually get both. Insurance pays for it that or my angel dentist doesn’t worry about it
you never knew you cant see cavities?
@@haydito1447Nitrous doesn't really do much to numb the pain, it's more to relax you, gives you kind of a floating, pleasant feeling. If that's what they planned to use, it definitely would have been a very superficial cavity.
I was in hospital for 4 days. Shared my room with a 80 y/o grandma. We both had gall bladder removal surgery.
We ended up chatting sooo much and shared meals :0 … but we were fine ^^
That's awesome! I'm glad you had a nice room mate!
I actually (as a patient) went to hospitals quiet regularly as a family member was admitted, they had a clear "no eating" rule for her, it was strictly fluids (ice was an exception) she "ate" ice, drank water, wasn't allowed soda/other drinks just yet. They gave her a full tray of food,sides, dessert, and a soda on the side now they did realize the mistake maybe 10-15 minutes after they left it there and they told us we could eat it or else it would up in the trash.
Same, when my grandmother was at the hospital, she was refusing to eat anything by her mouth, so she was fed using a feeding tube. Still, the hospital kept sending meals for her and my mother (who was sleeping there with her). One time I was visiting around lunchtime I ate some. If no one eats it, it's going to the trash.
Dr. Mike opening the gifts was ADORABLE!! 😂 Sooo nerdy and genuinely excited, what a sweetheart! And people know him VERY well since those gifts hit right on the mark too! I really enjoyed that part all around! 😊
being chronically ill, i'm at my hospital every 2 weeks, and having my specific nurses has helped so much, since they can see if things don't go well from my body language, know my full diagnosis, and I can ask them many things
Keep a patient care journal: log every med given and when it was given, what your pain status is, which doctors/nurses/physical therapists etc. came to see you and what they said - basically log anything that happens. Because of the environment, sleep schedule, medications, and all the information you are given, it is easy to get confused and medical staff aren't perfect. Keeping a record will make them take you more seriously when you ask questions, make complaints, or ask for meds. Also, it helps with pain control: if you're allowed pain meds every 4-6 hours and your journal shows your pain peaks at 5 hours but it normally takes 45 minutes for staff to get meds to you, you need to ask for it every 4 hours.
Find out when shift change is and plan accordingly: ask for anything 30 minutes before shift change and they will leave it to next shift, if you ask for it when new shift starts, they will be so busy with shift meeting, finding out what's going on and preparing for shift that it will be another hour at least before you get care. Anything that can't wait until an hour or more after shift change needs to be addressed an hour or more before it.
Keep a bowl/tray/stack of candy/snacks for the staff in your room and publicize it - you will get them dropping in all day "to check on you" and get better care. Even if they don't want it, they will think better of you for caring about them.
Try to have someone stay with you if allowed, but make sure it's the right person. Someone who you don't feel the need to entertain, someone who is content to sit quietly for hours, someone who will religiously help you keep log book and remember questions you wanted to ask, and most of all someone who will be respectful of staff yet speak up for you.
Wow this is actually incredibly helpful, brilliant idea!
@juliannam.n.2336 unfortunately, my family has a lot of experience with this lol
Ive had multiple hospitalizations for one to three weeks and all this is SO GOOD!!!! It took me a long time to figure all this out and when I did my stays were so much more comfortable
I’m glad you are discussing being your own advocate. I’ve had two doctors agree I am allergic to pitocin, and basically don’t do well with any artificial hormones. My last birth was a hospital transfer from a birthing center and my birth plan specifically stated not to use pitocin for induction or c-section after care. My two midwives, my husband, and I all explained this to the doctor because she refused to believe I had any issues with the the meds (which are technically being used off script when related to birth). Despite written and verbal refusal to consent, the doctor still tried to give me pitocin after surgery. Hubby checked everything that they gave me and verified with me what the bag was, then promptly told the nurse still messing with my meds he would yank the IV out of my arm if she didn’t immediately remove it. She automatically called the doctor and the doctor immediately had her put a saline bag in instead to prevent hemorrhaging (FYI, pitocin caused me to hemorrhage during my first birth, plus immediate postpartum psychosis issues, among other things).
Lack of being able to advocate for myself or have true informed consent during my first birth has me still dealing with birth trauma PTSD. I would have never taken pitocin knowing my history with artificial hormones and would have skipped straight to surgery if the doctor had just explained the magnesium they were giving me to stabilize my HELLP syndrome would cause dilation to be almost impossible. But everything was forced on me.
Wow that's terrible, I'm so sorry. I wonder what kind of god complex these people have in just...deciding what you're allergic to apparently?? Birth trauma is real and I hope you are getting the help you need.
That's a horrific experience 😢
If you had a cesarean your body does not always realize you have given birth, so the use is critical for preventing hemorrhage. Did you have an allergy to the medication?
Severely dislocated & broke my ankle. They set it, discharged me. Slipped in the rain, and landed back on it, hearing a crunch again. Went back to the ER. Shift change for nurses. The one nurse/phleb put the IV for pain killers in the same arm from just hours before. Although, she missed the vein! I knew she missed the vein because it was forming a bubble and was burning, but she said she’s the nurse, she knows what she was doing. (I briefly had used drugs in my past, shooting it, so I knew she missed the vein). I was screaming as they fixed the re dislocation. I got lucky because a nurse from the earlier visit walked by, saw my mother, heard me screaming and knew something was wrong (because earlier I had a positive attitude and was joking about my misfortune). She took one look, took it out and put it in the other arm. She made a note that the nurse/phleb clearly missed it. She was happy that I stood up for myself and made it known that there was something wrong
Rule 4 almost caused us to lose my son, my partner (who suffers from CPTSD) was told she could leave as nothing was wrong and were getting ready to do the discharge papers,my partner fought and fought they said " it's your anxiety of being a first time mum" they reluctantly gave her a scan...the baby wasn't moving all together, rushed into the labour ward and begun inducing, he had breathing problems and had to be in the ICU. he is perfectly healthy now and just turned 1yr old but if we listened...we wouldn't of had our child....
As a pregnant woman, you know your body better than anyone and you SHOULD advocate for yourself indeed. My mom was almost told to go back home on her 4th and 5th pregnancy. She had to say "doc/nurse, I've had 3/4 kids already, I know how my delivery works. Please admit me or I'm going to have this baby right here while "walking out"..."
I gotta say, as a kid I thought labor and delivery always happened in about 5-7 hours altogether (3-5 for (early) contractions and 2 to get to the hospital and get out of delivery room) because that's how I met my lil bros & sis XD
YES YES YES to the advocacy. Back when I was diagnosed with T1D, they intentionally used short needles since I didn't need anything longer and longer needles felt like they hurt far more. I was terrified of longer needles. Once, a new nurse came in with a needle twice the size of the one usually used to administer insulin to me. I kept insisting that I swore the other one was shorter and after giving up trying to convince me I was wrong, she actually asked someone else to look and found the original needle size. Not that big of a deal, but it make my little brain both relieved and proud :')
I had one with needles too. It happened when I was in my early 20's
Nurse was having a hard time finding the right spot in my hands, after the 4 or 5th hole it was more painfull than I could bear and I started to scream in pain.
The nurse then went shaming saying to everybody hear (it was a comunal room with around 6 or more beds) how I was acting like a little baby and that I was a small kid afraid of needles.
I got pissed and yelled "I'm a regular blood donor, I used to put needles on my hand as kid because was bored, I take blood and get medicine without a flinch. I'm saying this. is. hurting. too much!"
She fronze long enough to a doctor show up to deescalate, he send her to another patient and get another nurse to give me the medicine.
It hurt because my had was already sore but was bearable.
I’m proud of you for advocating for yourself! :)
The needle size matters! If you don't need an 18 gauge cannula (big! Like the Red Cross uses for blood donations!), a 22 or 24 gauge should be quite enough!
To me it seems like she didn't want to wait a "long time" for the insulin to pass through the needle.
Good on you!
@UCHhHuXfqjp7vPNp4eISJzwA
TL;DR
Don't dig with the needle: you're cutting tissue and causing unnecessary bruises. Two strikes (needle sticks) and you're out! Donors don't have to give blood that day and can come back a few days later. On a double-arm machine, neither the phlebotomist nor the nurse could hit my veins. After a long history of giving gallons of whole blood and many double units of platelets, I left and never gave blood again.
Give blood!
Story
For some reason, if someone doesn't get the stick right away, they will dig around for the vein under the skin. They did that to me at the Red Cross with a _big effin' cannula,_ and when I saw what was causing me to hurt more and more, I saw he was digging like that.
"Hey! Hey! Hey!" I yelled. "You're cutting tissue! Take it out!"
When you're donating blood, you really don't need to do that. The donor can leave and come back at another time pretty soon because their RBC's are still mature.
I was giving platelets, a double unit because I had a normally large platelet count. Platelet units are good for clotting factor for hemophiliac patients. They consolidate ten units at a time to make it, so the Red Cross love people like me.
I was giving on a double arm machine, which meant I needed a needle in both arms. One to give, the other to return my red blood cells (RBC's).
I dismissed the phlebotomist and asked for the nurse. If she couldn't hit my veins -which at the time were not hard to hit- I would leave.
The nurse couldn't hit them, either, which is what I expected after all the digging, and I left the blood-drawing site, never to return.
I am proud to have donated over 3 gallons of blood over the years (8 units is about a gallon), and I got my pins for them (a golden blood drop with numbers on it). I also gave many double units of platelets. And I get sad that I can't let myself give anymore (not just placing the needles).
Please give blood! It's about a five minute draw plus snacks to help replenish you. Yes, you have to answer a bunch of questions, and you get a lancet stick to get a hematocrit reading. ( _ouch!_ ) You sometimes wait for a table, but it's worth it.
Every unit helps at least three people with packed red blood cells, plasma, platelets, and more.
The blood supply is a dynamic and living supply. Each unit can only last 21 days in the refrigerator. 90 days IIRC in the freezer. Blood is always needed, and it gets shunted around a lot from blood bank to blood bank to fill transfusion needs.
My daughter has cerebral palsy so we have had many ER visits. I learned very quickly not to mention how quiet it was in there. It never failed that all of a sudden you would see so many people being brought in. The worst blood draw I ever had was from a doctor. My arm was bruised almost down to my wrist and halfway up my arm. It took a long time to go away.
Advocacy is so important for so many reasons. My mother's on quite a few medications for her mental health, much like I am, and when she was last admitted to the hospital, the one in charge of her medications refused to give her the main one she takes for her severe depression, something she's taken consistently for over thirty years. They were treating her like she was an addict arguing for pain meds. It was only when my aunt stepped in that they admit they didn't know what that medication even was. Like, it wasn't even an issue with interactions. They just refused to look into the medication at all because they didn't recognize it when she brought it up.
Thankfully there weren't any interactions (it's a pretty tame antidepressant iirc?) so they were able to administer it while she was hospitalized, but I swear we were all ready to rock someone's jaw for treating my mom that way, lmao.
A few days ago I was in the ER with a dislocated jaw. I was expecting everyone to be grumpy since it was nighttime but all the staff were very nice people and that helped a lot, cause it was pretty terrifying. It's a good thing I don't do drugs or anything cause I literally couldn't tell them if I did lol.
hope you're doing well now! wishing you a healthy life ahead
I'm so glad you had a good experience!!
To anyone worried about not being able to communicate something important for a similar reason (or any reason): we have plenty of methods to communicate with patients that are not verbal! Pen and paper would work great in a situation like this, but we have things for other conditions which cause difficulty with verbal communication too (like picture boards!). Please please stand up for yourself and communicate what you need to communicate, and we will do our best to make that process easier for you!
That sounds brutal but I'm glad they were so nice to you. Hope you feel better soon!
Thanks everyone. I am feeling better now, I just can't chew for a week or so which is gonna be annoying.
Just so you know, most people working the night shift actually start at night or evening, or mid day and will be getting off soon. They don't have someone from 6 am until 6 am the next day. Maybe a doctor in surgery or something but of course I'm sure you meant the whole of the staff. If a medical professional is grumpy towards their patient during their shift that is highly unprofessional, even with the fact that people have human emotions. I hope you are doing better but you shouldn't be afraid to go to the ER for a real emergency (which yours was!).
Loved the first thing. My mom used to work in the hospital and every time she got home late, I’d ask is someone said “quiet”.
I went through a horrible experience about 15 years ago, (I don’t want to post the exact details), let’s just say I was in the hospital for something, and the nurse I got for the first part of my stay was WONDERFUL, explaining what was going to happen, what to expect, and I was so thankful for her guidance while going through a terrible time.
I am a CNA. I was visiting one of my residents in the hospital and they asked if I would assist. The patient has diminished cognition and a history of violence, but being familiar with him I was sure I could help. He was uncharacteristically cooperative, FOR THE FIRST ATTEMPT. By the third try he was extremely agitated, and I was pissed. I insisted on another nurse to draw the blood. I was able to get him to settle down and we got the blood sample. They explained that the first nurse was new at drawing blood. I expressed my disappointment at them deciding to use this patient as a guinea pig. I informed my supervisor but don't know what actions may have been taken.
Friend of my dads hurt his back and went to the ER, and the doctor discharged him WAY to soon. Long story short, the friend had significant back problems the doctor didn’t diagnose and address and being sent home made things worse, to the point he’s suffered partial paralysis, leading to him sueing the hospital and doctor and winning.
If memory serves me right, it was revealed during discovery that the hospital had this bonus program in the ER, where if a doctor gets a patient out in a short time (I think 2 hours) they got a bonus, so the doctor was more occupied trying to get bonuses then treating patients.
Thats seriously disgusting prioritizing money over the patients care. I hope the hospital admin learned their lesson.
Why would such program even exist? Healthcare is not customer service.
Oh gotta love those hospital administrators
Add on to that crappy incentive system that back problems are amongst the hardest things to properly diagnose if it is not something able to be seen on an x-ray/CAT scan.
@@emmel4fun This is America. Yes, it is.
My mom got the best advice from a neurosurgeon years ago when I was a baby and had to be sent to the children’s hospital. He told her “trust your gut especially when it comes to your children. You know your children better than the doctors and when you know something is wrong and the doctors brush you off, ask for another opinion until someone listens to you. Doctors sometimes believe that they know better but that is not always the case”
It's so sad it always has to come to this in this day and age, ugh !!!!!
Several years ago my mother went in for a hysterectomy and she kept complaining that she was having difficulty breathing. The nurse would come in and adjust the wrap that was around her waist and after some point told my mother she couldn't adjust it anymore. Granted my mother was heavy dosed with pain meds but it took until the next day for the doctor to appear and check her out to learn she developed pneumonia and said they should have been notified last night that she was having issues breathing but none of the nurses called it in despite her and us alerting each nurse even during the shift changes. Ended up being 3 different nurses we alerted over it... Evening, night, and morning shift nurses. (( My mom has COPD since before the surgery and other complications that has occurred since the operation but not involving her lungs thankfully. ))
I had a c-section and they gave me morphine and I was allergic to it didn't know at the time. Called the nurse who argued with me. I then called my mom and she called the nurse and then called the drs when she wouldn't listen. My mom's a nurse.
my mom developed a different type of infection after hers. she had covid-like symptoms (this was before covid escaped the wuhan lab {my mom has never been to China}), and was in the hospital for a week. for a month afterward, she had an awful cough. she now has bell's palsy
It is important to listen to the patient, they know their bodies, their records, and intuition is on point most of the times. I know health professional have to go by a guideline, but listening to the patient can save some time.
Once I endured 4 days with high fever, I suspected it was a kidney infection. I told doctors I thought it was something with my kidneys, but they told me it was only a flu, because either way i would've had an UTI first. I waited six hours for them to tell me that the test for flu wasnt right. After that, they told me it was a kidney infection and I was close to losing my kidneys.
@@liliandres6056 maybe SARS
yeah
I had a doctor take my blood once. It was a well respected teaching hospital. My blood was drawn by someone brand new. She really hurt me and I didn't want her touching me. So, he did it and I didn't feel a thing. My veins have always been easy to find. So I was surprised when tbe newbie had trouble. She hurt me so badly, I told her to stop.I am forever grateful for the doctor who successfully took my blood.
Don't go to teaching hospitals. Trainees suck at their jobs. Avoid trainees *in any profession.*
Amen to the nurse vs doctor thing. When you have a patient who wants the doctor to do a procedure instead, it's because they don't realize nurses are usually better at performing procedures because unlike doctors who are good at ordering procedures, nurses actually do them on a regular basis. Practice and experience are essential.
Yeah well, unlike nurses Doctors went to Medical school.
@@patrick-ip4yf Brah. You literally missed the whole point of what I said. If you need an IV placed in your arm and you'd rather have a doctor do it instead of the nurse it's because you're ignorant of how hospitals and clinics work. Many doctors have placed maybe one or two IVs in med school and never did it again. They never even got proficient at doing it. Nurses on the other hand do it every single day and become very good at it. The point is that doctors don't do most of the procedures that they order and are usually not as good as nurses at doing them. If you don't understand that then you don't have a good understanding of how real clinics function and you probably watch too many medical dramas on TV.
@@4dojo I was meaning to say Doctors don't do these procedures in the first place, because they are needed elsewhere, and Doctors all well within there authority to order these procedures as they went to medical school.
@@patrick-ip4yf Obviously your comment was intended to put nurses down, but in the end you just stated what everyone already knows. Doctors go to medical school and they play a different role in the medical field than nurses. That being said, nurses also intensively study medicine in college and the course is extremely difficult and competitive. I'm not pretending that RN programs are as long or difficult as MD programs, but make no mistake that becoming a nurse is far more difficult than obtaining most other college degrees. I speak from experience because I have graduated college multiple times and hold multiple college degrees. At my college the RN program was so intense and competitive that only a small percentage of applicants could achieve a high enough GPA to even get accepted into the program and more than half of those that could be into the program failed out anyway. And by the way, doctors are far from all knowing even in their fields. That's why there are so many specialties and sub specialties. As nurse I have on countless occasions called up doctors and practitioners to point out errors in their orders or even orders that just don't make sense given the situation. No, I'm not on the level of a doctor in terms of pharmacology, but like I said, nurses still need to know a great deal about medicine and pharmacology and we are trained and expected to notice med errors. Not noticing a doctor's prescription errors can actually get a nurse into trouble. So don't talk about nurses like they're fodder.
@@4dojo And when you say fodder, what do you mean?
My mum was told she was overreacting when she saw two different GP’s about her thunder clap headaches. One gp was nice but dismissive, the other told her that she was overreacting. One thing about my mum is that she has an incredibly high pain threshold. They only took on board what was in front of them rather than my mums very obvious and serious symptoms. My mum told the GP that she would be going to have an mri privately….he told her not to bother wasting her money and they wouldn’t find anything, but said it was her choice.
The morning of the scan results a very apologetic GP rang and told her she immediately needed to go to hospital as she had subdural haematoma!
That’s awful. I hope she’s doing well now
My mom had a similar series of GPs tell her she was being hypercondriatic over a car crash she was in a good 15 years prior now, and eventually it was discovered she had actual spinal damage that was causing the pain she was in more or less constantly. It wasn't until a Therapeutic specialist literally went through the painscale with my mom and adjusted it for my MOM specifically that something didn't add up.... thus hospital MRIs and such right after and, well, my mom is now very distrustful of doctors and nurses and such that seem to be knowitall idiots that toss out diagnoses in minutes without even any direct examination first.
That’s really annoying.
@@zaffytaffy809 Thank you. she had the operation to drain the blood but still suffers from head pain as the area is so sensitive to hot/cold and pressure etc. The area they drilled on the skull isn’t filled back in so she really suffers, unfortunately.
Women are less likely to be believed.
When men and women describe pain with the same words. People believe men to be in worse pain than the corresponding women.
It sucks
I spend a lot of time in hospitals. I have 2 serious medical conditions and I have several family members in the medical profession. I was impressed by my last stay (I'm not going to name names). During the shift change the doctor and nurses who were leaving with the doctor and nurses coming on would come into my room and go over all their notes with me confirming everything they were telling the new doctor. This was doubly important because my conditions are rare and we need to make sure everyone is up to speed in case one of them is triggered.
I'm impressed too! So happy you got thorough care.
I'm glad you mentioned about other people consuming the patients food or beverage. I was hospitalized with a fungal blood infection and I was in septic shock. They kept track of what went in and came out. They would even keep track of popsicles they gave me. I was limited to 64 oz a day of fluids a day. It sounds like a lot but I drank constantly.
Mike is the Coolest Doctor/ TH-camr ever, I wish we had people like him in Australian Hospitals!
Don't read my name.
Frr, English hospitals are full of grumpy old doctors who mis diagnosed me and told me to stand up when I clearly couldn’t cause I was paralysed
Cap
Frrr
I wish we had people like him in English hospitals
I got diagnosed with kidney failure and at the hospital the doctors were pushing very hard for me to leave the country since I didn't have citizenship or DACA at the time and it was so frightening because it was doctors and their secretaries essentially threatening us with the idea that immigration could somehow know of my whereabouts if I didn't go. Thankfully a couple latin social workers started being helpful to us and got emergency Dialysis and eventually got DACA as well so was able to get into Dialysis treatment center. I was 24 I am now 33 and still on dialysis
if a episode on how organ transplant could be possible for undocumented people it would be incredibly helpful
That is very strange because even if you are a criminal and just killed someone the hospital still has to treat you/ save your life. Something seems sketchy if they can deny treatment just because you're not a citizen but if a citizen commits a crime they are fine keeping them alive.
If they are legally allowed to deny treatment to people who aren't citizens then we really need to fix that ASAP because that is just unacceptable.
I know laws can vary from State to State but I would hope that CA (where I previously worked in healthcare) is not the only state where what happened to you is not allowed. At the MINIMUM you had grounds to file a grievance with the State medical licensing board.
I wish for you good health and continued access to any medical care that you may require in the future.
@@CB-cv9yh I believe so to. but at the time not only was it a fear of health but safety and so much at once the idea of adding making any moves on a hospital or anything like that and not knowing if we could be protected was something we were not thinking of at that time.
thank you for the well wishes
I'm guessing you may have been treated in Texas where they have incredibly regressive and racist laws. The ideal is that everyone must be treated equally if they require healthcare, but the reality is far from that in this "first world" country.
@@ginsoakedgirl4 No South Carolina, the hard part was they did it not in a "get out!" way. they said it in a " well there is nothing we can do, you have to go" so it was hard to know if it was the only option or not
As someone who works as a receptionist at an emergency veterinary hospital, most of these things are also true for your furry babies as well!
At 2:00 I had my appendix removed and they were trying to get rid of me, but they didn't even really ask me how I was doing, though I felt fine. However, another nurse was very worried and against me leaving. I stood up and was walking toward the door, when I almost fainted and threw up. The nurse saw this and basically said that she was not discharging me. She refused to let me go. Even if she was fired, she wouldn't let us leave. Also proves a point for 4:40
So this is a story I have based off of your advocate for yourself, about 3 years ago I had a really bad accident and hit my head on a steel pole, went to the emergency room, I did not remember anything from the past 3 hours (aka the entire incident and drive to the hospital) and kept asking my dad what had happened. The doctor had claimed it was just a bump and nothing major, in the process of discharging me the night doctors came in and one of them saw why I had came into the ER and read that I couldn't remember anything as well as complaining about jaw pain, before discharging me they took me to go get a MRI to find out I had a brain bleed, I was sent to children's and underwent surgery due to a significant amount of blood between my brain and skull, I was told that if that doctor didn't do that MRI my brain would have likely stopped due to the pressure being put on it
That was incredibly irresponsible. Any trauma patient with a head injury + post traumatic amnesia ALWAYS needs to be checked for ICB.
Yes, that was clearly wrong decision from a doctor. Even people not trained understand that head traumas are possible BIG CAUSE for concern. And there is surely a protocol to follow about them. He was not following it!
GLAD that your life was saved by that good doctor!
Glad the night shift guy saved you. After my accident they tried to make me walk on a broken hip and back so they could send me home in a Uber. I was unconscious when I came in but it was the state trooper finishing my accident report who talked to me about hitting my head and memory and how I felt. He should have arrested himself for practicing medicine without a license, but his diagnosis I was OK was correct.
I'd add: Be kind to hospital staff and health care workers. They are chronically tired, don't get enough time (or have none at all) to get a meal (much less a snack), are unable to go to the bathroom regularly, are overworked, have to deal with different personalities and difficult hospital policies, and yet they still do a phenomenal job trying to improve your quality of life in small and big ways alike. Sometimes, making small talk is something you can do to get their mind off their intense shifts. Sometimes, giving them a smile or a thank you makes them feel like they are seen and their effort appreciated. Sometimes, we just need to stretch our patience a bit, understand that they are doing the best that they can with what they have, and that their work is beyond just a profession, it is a daily and sincere act of compassion and empathy for those that they come into contact with. Please don't bark at them. Please don't humiliate them. Speak up when you need to, but please be mindful of tone of voice. I've seen firsthand how acknowledging their humanity makes it easier for them to be their best. Thank you, especially to all nurses, med techs, respiratory techs, rad techs, the orderly, and all others for the service and commitment you have. We would not being able to secure our health without your help. God bless you all.
I think it depends when you’re going against medical advice. I was admitted to the hospital and could see smoke and fire from my window. Being in the hospital I didn’t know there was an out of control fire just outside the city. I left against medical advice with my fiancé because I was concerned with what I was seeing out the window. We returned home and we were evacuated that evening. I’ll never forget the amount of fear, uncertainty, everything about leaving the hospital and then having to leave the city. It was insane. The hospital did evacuate but because of where the fire was they went north and it was awful. Glad we were all okay though.
I have questions about how a fire managed to go through an entire city without being contained or halted.
@@brothersandsistersofvalhalla - Sounds like California or Australia shenanigans where the fires are actually unmanageable
@@tomewifecollector9608 You can contain a fire by spraying around the sides of it in a circle or semi circle to make it much harder to keep spreading. Also those are usually forest fires not city fires. And those usually get contained within a neighbourhood never heard of one burning down a city or town.
That's an outlier in my experience. Sadly, most of the cases I've seen of patients leaving against medical advice have been those with addictions they are not able to satisfy while in the hospital. So they leave before the thing they are admitted for is fully treated
I’ve been evacuated from my home in CA three times in the last few years because of wildfires and my boyfriend had to evacuate an entire hotel he worked at. They aren’t even near each other, the whole county was at risk. Not everything burned up, but the fires can definitely come close to a lot of homes and businesses while crews are trying to contain them.
I had a health clinic who discussed my health with a nurse there who just happened to be my roommate. The roommate shared the information with my other roommate. It was a very uncomfortable situation for me. There were NO boundaries with these people. No respect.
During covid my mom was hospitalized for something noncovid. She has chf and I kept calling and finally talked to a charge nurse. She said my mom was gaining fluid rapidly. I ask if they were giving her her lasix. They weren't. If I hadn't been that pesky family member calling, they would have drown her in her own fluids. 😔
What's chf?
@@skydragon84 CHF is congestive heart failure
@@BrittanyScream1 Alright, good to know. Thank you for this information :)
@@skydragon84 No problem :3
So happy you were a concerned daughter and fought till you spoke to someone 💛
I used to work as a pharmacy tech and one day I was restocking the wards when I had to tell a nurse to throw away some medication they had just dropped on the floor. They had dropped the medication cup and had the tablets go everywhere and then just scooped it all back up like "oh well, 5 second rule!" They ended up throwing away the meds (with some protestation) when I confronted them about it, but I still reported it to the ward manager. They just seemed so casual about putting the patient at risk, and then acted like doing the right thing was so unnecessary and inconvenient.
Now that I think of it, that kind of behavior might've been part of the reason that ward got so many norovirus outbreaks.
That's gross!
I've only ever heard of the "five second rule" from the US. Never in my over 50 years anywhere else. Yes, I didn't grow up in the US, but in Germany.
Hi Dr. Mike, you should do a video reacting to crashes, falls, and accidents from telenovelas. They get INSANE!!
La Rosa 😦
@@UnknownUser32100 La Roas de Guadalupe does have very intense accidents!!
@@Ximena_R04 Yes 🙌
I have been straight and honest with my doctors since years about some past drug abuse I've suffered (and have been treated for since). I get the sense that I'm not taken seriously when I really do need to discuss medication. I feel I've been labeled very negatively. Likely as drug seeking. Makes me feel like my mistakes have voided my respect-and-life-pass.
Regarding leaving AMA, that’s great advice to a point. It requires the treatment being provided to be at least minimally competent and at least involves consulting the patient’s primary specialist. I was 11 weeks pregnant when I had referred shoulder and abdominal pain, not like a miscarriage which I knew from many firsthand experiences. This was an IVF pregnancy and two embryos implanted. When the ER did the ultrasound they found a rupturing ectopic and one in my uterus. They would not speak with my reproductive endocrinologist and announced he had no privileges at this hospital (he did). Since I have a number of complicating medical issues they know nothing about since they don’t have my records, including a bleeding disorder that makes surgery extremely risky if not handled carefully. I asked to be transferred to my physician. They ridiculously invoked EMTALA and denied it. To me, a hospital in house counsel🙄 Even though I would have gone to a higher level of care they still refused. I had no choice but to leave AMA and have my husband drive me to my RE’s office which is co-located with a large hospital. It was all surreal. My RE examined me and confirmed the ectopic and that it wasn’t hemodynamically stable. I was sent across the parking lot to be admitted through the ER (ED). By the time they got me into a gown I had lost consciousness and have no memories until waking up in post op. I required a 2L blood transfusion but hospital #1 was equal parts ignorant and possessive, deeming anyone not on their staff unfit. They talked as though I hired a witch doctor versus one of the pioneers of in vitro reproduction. I received a highly inappropriate ultimatum: undergo surgery by a general surgery resident who had never seen my records or didn’t even take a history for me with no intent to preserve my in utero pregnancy or to leave AMA knowing I was already bleeding internally. I trusted my instincts both in going to the hospital at 0600 on a Saturday and in leaving hospital #1 AMA. And now in a post-Roe, anti abortion trigger laws kind of world people need to know my surgery would have been a violation in most states with the so called trigger legislation. You see, even an ectopic pregnancy has a heartbeat. It’s a completely normal pregnancy that implanted in the wrong place (and for all of the pro life morons who declare women in this scenario should “move the baby to the womb,” you can’t do that as it’s medically impossible.
Watched several people die after leaving AMA. Doctors would say, "I warned them. Here is the signed form".
They didn't like it and were annoyed that the patient wouldn't listen.
The ectopic thing is not true I don’t k ow where your getting that from. It is absolutely false!!!
This miscarriage thing is another completely false narrative. Please read the bills and if you don’t understand the language consult an attorney not tik Tok.
Any surgery or procedures to save the mother that result in the fetus dying is not an abortion and the all the bills are written to allow for that. I mean it’s a duh! Everyone acts like pro life advocates just want to murder women or something. How crazy is that? Pro life advocates are just as concerned for the mothers as they are the babies, they prove it every day in many ways that never seem to cross over into the mainstream narrative.
I'm gonna put my neck on the line and say that I am against abortion. HOWEVER, I am willing to accept medical emergencies such as ectopic pregnancy. I am aware that certain emergencies can and will be fatal to both the baby and the mother if action is not taken. If the abortion is for the purposes of saving your social status, that's where my line is drawn.
Misinformation.
I love that he can still be so entertaining and still give sound medical advice. He’s amazing 💛
Regarding AMA: when I was working in independent living and we did nursing home transitions to get people out in the community on their own - we had to use AMA often, because the LTCFs have financial incentive to keep the patient. LTCFs aren't hospitals. But I just had to comment, sometimes AMA is necessary.
Plus, if you are a celebrity wanting to interact with fans semi anonymously and AMA can be used
6:03 Don’t be afraid to leave a hospital and go to another one if they’re not treating you urgently enough. I was suffering immense pain, constantly vomiting (when I hadn’t eaten in the 4 days that I suffered at home before finally going) with a stomach issue when I left an ER after they “triaged” me placed an IV in my arm (with no meds for relief) and sent me back to the waiting for for over 1-2 hours.
They were calloused an rude when I went and asked how much longer I’d have to wait.
I drove 20+ minutes (in the worst pain of my life, this was worse than the strongest contractions with no meds) to another hospital and after I told them I’d just left another ER and explained my symptoms they gave me a CT scan and rushed me into emergency surgery.
Internal hernia repair.
I’d needed it for at least 2 years, but every time I went to the ER they gave me pain meds and sent me away.
THANK GOD I listened to my intuition and left. There’s a 50% mortality rate for the condition I was suffering from.
Being a patient advocate for my 90 year old mother. My mom was on hospice care, I had been her caregiver for a few years, taking her to doctor appointments, managing her medicines. I've always liked to research about things so I was going through the drugs in the hospice kit and got to morphine. I researched it and found it was in the same family of drugs as codeine, which my mom had had an anaphylaxis event with. I brought this up with both the nurse and then the doctor who would visit and didn't believe me. I researched further and found something written by an ER doctor about a synthetic morphine that was safer to use. I again talked to the doctor, who was admittedly a little peeved with me at this point but she made two calls to other doctors. The first didn't know but the second, an ER doctor, agreed with me and so my mom was prescribed the new drug, and just in time as a couple weeks later I she needed it and I'd have to give her some a few times a week.
You literally saved your mom's life
That is excellent you noticed and were mom's advocate! People don't realize that Dr's don't know everything, and nurses and pharmacists know a lot!
I'd love a more detailed video about advocation. A personal example was being in the emergency room for about 17 hours without even being scanned. My husband said after the first hour talking to lots of staff, someone checked on me every 3 hours. After requests for updates and information was ignored I decided to leave. I was told it would be AMA because "if you leave you could have a stroke" and my response was "if I stay here I could have a stroke." Found out at a neuro appointment 6 months later that I did have a stroke. My symptoms were worst before arriving, which is why I decided to go in. They told me I was to young to be having a stroke. I think that's why they didn't prioritize treating me. Also it was a December Friday night in Wisconsin. I know they were busy, but that doesn't seem to excuse failing to examine and treat me... I'm sure there was a much better way I could have gone about this situation. I'd like the opportunity for everyone to learn how to go about speaking up for ourselves and what to do if our concerns don't seem heard.
Regarding the advocating for yourself, I was at a navy clinic for a yearly checkup and the person reading my file to me mentioned I was b- blood type, I politely spoke up to tell him I am O+ to which asked who told you that. My response was "the Red Cross" and pulled out my donor card that listed my blood type. He said well that looks official enough and wrote in the correct blood type. It actually says O+ on my bootcamp dog tags too. Glad I never needed a blood transfusion at that clinic though!
Thank you for saying the early and safe discharge thing. I am a denials and appeals/utilization nurse and we see so many patients refusing to go because it’s too late (at 8pm) and they’d rather sleep in an additional night or for another non medical or safety related issue. Meanwhile, I was admitted in January with pyelonephritis in my transplanted kidney and I could not wait for my C&S to be back and my fever to be absent for 24hrs to get the hell out of there. Hospital beds give you intense back pain.
I dunno why but this reminds me of when my mom got diagnosed with cancer when i was 17. My dad was shocked and shaken, had no questions cause he couldn't think. I remember asking the doctor everything, so much so that the doctor advised I be her caretaker instead of my dad. I got to watch how they change her colostomy and even helped out obviously regarding non emergent situations with her. I've always had an interest in medicine and I thank my little 5-6 year old self looking up medical things on the internet. Im 20 now, unfortunately mom didn't make it but I know i'm going to do something medical now.
If you like microscopes you might like cytology. Cytologists work in medical laboratories. We look at cells and diagnose diseases (our main focus is cancer) based on what the cells look like. We work closely with pathologists.
@@lizade3814 I have thought about pathology as a back up. My first choice as of right now is Epidemiology
I remember when my mom got a concussion, it changed our lives forever. She was ok and got out of the hospital with time. After the events that happened after that, I got really sad. My mom found your channel and showed it to me since I want to be a doctor. I have to say, thank you for brightening my life Doctor Mike.
My son is a brain injury survivor too, so I know what you're going through. Your mom will never be the same person she was, but try to be patient with who she is now and love her unconditionally. She'll be so proud of you when you walk across that stage to get your M.D. diploma. Good luck!
My hospital failed to diagnose my concussion and mild tbi. I now have permanent post concussion syndrome where I am dizzy all the time, have memory problems, visions problems it sucks and I hate that my local hospital is known as the worst one in the province
I agree for the part about leaving the hostal against medical advice but my mom did it to me once: after appendicitis operation, i was supposed to stay at the hospital for 3 days and stayed 2 weeks because i couldnt eat anything and would throw up "nothingness" several times a day, no one could know what to do. My mom was sure it was anxiety due to being in the hospital, i was loosing a lot of weight for a 9 year old, and against medicaal advice we left - and i started eating again at home soooooooooo she was right lol
I was in the hospital for a broken leg. They had an IV hooked up to me for hydration and antibiotics. I was still thirsty though. My mom asked if I could have Gatorade from the vending machine. The nurses gave an estatic yes because Gatorade helps hydrate and makes hitting the body's blood tubes easier. They always got it on the first try.
I definitely felt hydrated on ivy cause I was never thirsty and hated water back then it just tasted bad except ice
IV