We had a patient on the Med/Surg unit who had been brought into the hospital for an unintentional drug overdose. She was in the ICU for a couple of days and then was transferred to Med/Surg. She had an anoxic brain injury that made her behavior very unpredictable and put her at risk for injury. She was a very active patient who would get up quickly, try to stand on her bed and jump off, and would rock back and forth while sitting in her bed. She needed a very hands-on sitter and sometimes would require multiple staff members to keep her safe. She was in and out of violent restraints but the staff wanted to make sure they kept her out of restraints whenever possible. We took her outside a couple of times with a few staff members to help with her mentation. The mom, dad, and the patient thought that taking her outside was a great idea and seemed to help the patient's mentation.
One Saturday night I got a call from Cecilee Carmack BSN, RN, shift lead, regarding this patient. She stated that the patient was standing on her bed and trying to jump off her bed and the staff was afraid that she was going to injure herself. She wanted to take the bed out of the room and place three mattresses on the floor for the patient's safety. This was a request that I had never had before so I contacted Sue Schulz, CNO and she stated that if that was in the best interest of the patient then she was ok with putting the mattresses on the floor. Cecilee contacted housekeeping to get extra mattresses and then removed the bed from the room and placed the mattresses on the floor. This idea kept the patient safe and she rolled around on the mattresses and did not have any injuries throughout the weekend. The mother and father came in on the dayshift and thought this was a great idea and we're very thankful for the staff's due diligence to keep their daughter out of restraints and also keeping her safe.
Before the patient was discharged I asked the mother to give us an update on the patient's progress as she had made a lasting impression on many staff members. We wanted to see her get back on the road to recovery with her brain injury and also her drug addiction as she was successful in the past. I received an email from the mother giving us an update on the patient's progress and also thanking us for the great care she received on our unit and also she loved the mattress on the floor idea.
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Our 25 year old daughter, B arrived at Beaumont Trenton Hospital ICU. Luckily, she moved out of ICU but remained at Trenton before her rehab at Taylor. To prevent pulling out her IVs and/or falling from her bed, B needed to be restrained to her bed. I recall my daughter's large beautiful smile when I walked into the room but yet she did not know my name. This was a horrible time for my family and her recovery continues (and during COVID this adds to the challenge).
While in your care, B was not sleeping much and her body would not allow her to rest. I called her "wiggle worm" because she could not lay or sit still. I want to thank the staff for trying hard to keep her from being restrained to the bed hour after hour. I believe that if B was restrained more than she was, her ankles/wrists/feet/hands would have had additional injuries. I remember coming one day and the nurse quickly stopped me, I believe so that I would not be upset to see that they had placed two mattresses on the floor so that B did not have to be restrained and would not hurt herself. I was delighted that you all cared so much for her and I laid on the floor with her that visit. Special thanks to Ms. Rhonda, she is a remarkable loving addition to your staff. She spent many long hours with B and she was so kind to her and to me. I recall she volunteered extra time with B even though Ms. Rhonda was leaving for her family vacation. Ms. Rhonda cut her own sleep short so that she could sit with B late into the night. Someone, maybe everyone in your staff talked to B about her bad choices in life and that she needs to be grateful for her blessings and make better choices (we have no details because she does not recall those conversations). My husband and I spent few hours at the hospital. Not only were we scared, sad, but I was also angry my daughter did not value her life as much as we do. Although she did not understand, we knew this accident changed all of our lives forever. And this was not the first horrible accident/long recovery that we worked through with her. With that being said, in a way, your staff became her family while she was at the hospital. Thank you so very much.
So, B is even more sweet, lovable, kind, and gentle. She sees very few people (horrible friends are gone and COVID keeps us from interacting with others). Walking is much better (she doesn't have neuropathy, she has chorea). Wiggling is minimal. Pain has returned (neck, back, feet). Cognitive skills improving. Short/long term memory-some improvement. She does live with us and we are pursuing independent living maybe by spring. Thank you and please continue to talk to your patients (your kindness went a long way).