There Ought To Be A Law

Since my boss doesn't know about this blog, she can't monitor me over here for HIPPA violations. I don't give out sufficient information about clients that they would be identifiable, but the boss would know who I'm talking about. She's vigilant when it comes to that and I can't blame her but sometimes situations exist that require a place for me to vent. I'm not a frog, I can't really eat what bugs me, but I can spill it out and hope that helps.


We have a private case, a woman with dementia and a family that is so far in to denial that they keep violating her safety. Her doctor wants 24 hour care for her, has flat said that she can't be left alone...in writing...but the family will only pay for 12 hours of care daily. She is then diapered, placed into bed, and left there for the remaining 12 hours every day.


She is so far into her dementia that she bites and claws at anyone trying to help her. One of the girls was bitten on the abdomen through a sweat shirt hard enough to draw blood. We are weekly having to call 911 to help pick her up because she's slid to the floor during the struggle to transfer her, and when we inform the family, they seem to think that there's something wrong with her legs and we should walk her more often. She doesn't remember HOW to walk part of the time.


One son went so far as to tell us that she can't pay for 24 hour care, or for two people to do a transfer because there wouldn't be enough money left for them to inherit. Then he took her to a bone specialist who did nothing but decide she was in pain and he put her on hydrocodone. Her brain doesn't function enough under normal circumstances let alone while being drugged.


The idiot son who lives in the area took her to New Jersey for Memorial weekend against the advice of her doctor. She was sick. She became sicker, and instead of taking her to an emergency room in New Jersey, he brought her back here that Sunday. Drove with her unresponsive for 5 hours. She was so out of it that they thought she was dying when they got her to the ER here. They couldn't get a vein to give her fluids without a resection. The reason for the drive? HE had a fishing date on Monday and he didn't want to miss it. There is no consideration at all for her safety. It's so shocking to me.


The latest thing is that the daughter is here and she decided Mom needed a trip to the beauty parlor. They arranged at first to have the aide go too for transfering her. Last night the idiot son calls me to tell me the aide won't be necessary because the salon will have someone help. They never told the salon that she doesn't use her legs at all. So when they got there they couldn't get her out of the car. Idiot calls the office demanding to know why no aide went with her, when told that he made the change with me last night, he denied it. My only saving grace is that he also said he spoke to the office nurse this morning and she said she'd go help with the transfer. NO! She didn't say any such thing. They will not accept that she's mentally incompetent and that it affects everything.


The plan now is to take her to New Jersey again for the Fourth of July. After today that may have changed, but I doubt it. Their total denial as to her condition makes both the client and the aides unsafe. She's placed in bed for 12 hours, nobody there to reposition her, and she can't roll over herself. Her skin is breaking down, she's a diabetic so this is really dangerous. THEY DON'T LISTEN or they just don't care. She belongs in a nursing home, but that would mean nothing left for them to inherit and apparently that's ALL they care about.