Tuesday, October 29, 2013

More tales from the hospital Ward

In a ward it is interesting to observe and to listen to stories other people are telling. One morning I was listening to the nurses talk and they were talking about a situation that happened in the cafeteria. One of the nurses, at the end of the story said that story reflects the attitude of the caring staff at the hospital. She was being sarcastic. The story is that the nurse was in line waiting for food and she mention to the worker who is serving her about something was on the counter and that woman looked at her and said look lady I've told you before this is my stuff do not touch keep your hands off my stuff. The nurse continues her store say I felt embarrassed and she's I don't know what caused it because I have been always pleasant to the people in the cafeteria like I know how hard they work and I was astonished by how rude the young woman was and that was when the other nurse said that hurt the cafeteria workers, it's reflected the attitude of the staff at the hospital I was in. That was not what I saw in the nursing staff or the cleaning staff who I talked to and who I felt did a very good job when I was there. These people  are working under extreme pressure because there is not enough funding.. The staff takes the brunt of the frustration of the people who are patients and the family of patience. 

The administration are  making the decisions to not hire staff which causes great stress for the people who are on the front lawn. I found the people I worked with who helped me to be pleasant and very helpful.

Story 2 in the private room next to my ward at the hospital there was a woman of Portuguese descent I believe she had someone with her all day  looking after her needs because even through the walls I could hear her talking as if she was right beside me.  She kept talking and most of the time she was reasonably coherent and I believed she was not in a great stress. I was wrong. I finally figured out some of her story she had fallen and broken her hip she had visitors who spend time with her during the day. Most of the time however, she was alone. What when she was alone she talked to herself and she talked very loudly. When the nurses gave her medication or help turn to move or tried to get her to move she felt threatened and her comments were this. "Stop stop stop you're trying to kill me." She would repeat that phrase for 45 minutes to an hour straight in a very loud voice. The nurses had left and she was on her room but she continued to voice the concern that they were going to kill her. She would also at some point when the nurses were in her room say to the nurse "Thank you very much you have been great help to me I am going home."  

There would be no response or the response would be no you can't go home because you cannot walk. Even when the nurses left she would continue to say thank you for your help you have been very good to me but I am going home now and that phrase would continue very loudly for 2 hours. And then she would settle down. The problem I had was I did not know her story and she was very loud and especially at 2 o'clock or 3 o'clock or 4 o'clock in the morning it was very difficult for all of us to try and get to sleep.

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