Anita Ihrig
October 2022
Anita
Ihrig
,
RN
ICU
VA Sierra Nevada Health Care System
Reno
,
NV
United States
Anita persevered for us and persisted as we continued to fight this and push for the Rx to be corrected to the correct times and correct dosages.
My husband was in ICU as an overflow patient. He was in due to a blockage in his esophagus. But he also suffers from Parkinson’s Disease. When we were in the hospital we were told they give his meds twice a day at 2 PM and 10 PM. We have worked with Dr. P over the past 7 + years to get my husband's meds for his PD to work the best for him and to avoid any PD mental status changes, which we have experienced in the past. He takes his meds 4 times a day at specific dosages at 4 specific times. When we were told the twice-a-day protocol, we stated that would not be acceptable. Also, Anita showed us the dosages and they were very different from what we shared with her.
I was getting highly upset as at the dosages they had, he ran a very high risk of experiencing an abrupt change in mental status. Anita went to bat for us to get this changed. Since it was a Sunday, she hunted down the resident and could not find her, so she got another resident to come and talk to us about this and how we needed to get it changed.
He told us that upon admitting the resident can change the Rx he takes and they can be different from what he gets at home. This was unacceptable and we let him know this. It made no sense. Dr. P who is a neurologist and has had my husband under his care for over 7 years has set a very specific Rx protocol. Anita persevered for us and persisted as we continued to fight this and push for the Rx to be corrected to the correct times and correct dosages. Anita finally got Dr. C to come in, as he I believe was the Hospitalist and was over the residents. Dr. C reassured us that it would be changed. I believe without Anita my husband might have possibly gone into a PD-induced dramatic change in his mental status if the initially prescribed Rx was followed.
Also, it should be noted, Anita was caring for 2 additional patients in the ICU while dealing with our crisis. It was both my daughter and myself and we were not going to take no for an answer from the resident who really didn’t understand my husband’s PD and that PD is a neurological disease and the meds given are powerful neurological drugs that can adversely affect his brain and his overall health. Anita is our hero!
I was getting highly upset as at the dosages they had, he ran a very high risk of experiencing an abrupt change in mental status. Anita went to bat for us to get this changed. Since it was a Sunday, she hunted down the resident and could not find her, so she got another resident to come and talk to us about this and how we needed to get it changed.
He told us that upon admitting the resident can change the Rx he takes and they can be different from what he gets at home. This was unacceptable and we let him know this. It made no sense. Dr. P who is a neurologist and has had my husband under his care for over 7 years has set a very specific Rx protocol. Anita persevered for us and persisted as we continued to fight this and push for the Rx to be corrected to the correct times and correct dosages. Anita finally got Dr. C to come in, as he I believe was the Hospitalist and was over the residents. Dr. C reassured us that it would be changed. I believe without Anita my husband might have possibly gone into a PD-induced dramatic change in his mental status if the initially prescribed Rx was followed.
Also, it should be noted, Anita was caring for 2 additional patients in the ICU while dealing with our crisis. It was both my daughter and myself and we were not going to take no for an answer from the resident who really didn’t understand my husband’s PD and that PD is a neurological disease and the meds given are powerful neurological drugs that can adversely affect his brain and his overall health. Anita is our hero!