It’s that time of year…..the time of the Mom and Pop – Drops!!!!\u00a0 You know, when the family with big holiday plans doesn’t want to care for their elderly Mom or Pop.\u00a0 So where do they end up, the ER to be evaluated for ‘not looking good’ or ‘back pain present but unchanged for months’, expecting a hospital admission for an evaluation.\u00a0 Of course, when you tell them that there is no acute reason for admission they become angry saying ‘they can’t care for them’ and refuse to take them home.\u00a0 Hense, in they come….on our dime!!!\u00a0 And we want to know why Medicare is bankrupt?\u00a0 To make it worse, it turns out there won’t be anyone around to receive the patient home or care for them until after the holiday, and of course, they refuse placement into a longer care nursing facility.<\/p>\n
The fact that there is no recourse is just another example of how the system is broken.\u00a0 The attitude on the part of many families, that this is an acceptable use of the system, is just another example of entitlement.<\/p>\n
I remember staffing the VA Medical Center ER during winter holidays.\u00a0 Poor veterans would be sent by taxi and left at the ER ambulance bay with suitcase in hand.\u00a0 When their evaluation was completed and they were deemed able to be discharged home, we’d either get no response from the family, or worse, they’d tell us that there would be no one home and that the door would be LOCKED if we sent the patient home by cab. Welcome to the VA Medical Center for the holidays!!\u00a0 So very sad…….!!!<\/p>\n
There is so much wrong with this picture!!!\u00a0 From the government allowing this to occur with zero repercussion or cost to the patient or family, to the attitude of the family toward their loved ones, to the system’s inability to facilitate the return of the patient to their home.<\/p>\n
In reality, if there was any cost to the patient or their family, these issues would cease immediately.\u00a0 Unfortunately that is deemed unacceptable by those in charge of the system.\u00a0 The problem will just continue to become worse until there is some accountability and sense of responsibility instilled into the system.\u00a0 Sadly, this is also a societal problem, further illustrating the sense of entitlement pervasive in our society today.\u00a0 No wonder the healthcare system is broken and bankrupt.\u00a0 And, there seems to be little resolve to fix it!!!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
It’s that time of year…..the time of the Mom and Pop – Drops!!!!\u00a0 You know, when the family with big holiday plans doesn’t want to care for their elderly Mom or Pop.\u00a0 So where do they end up, the ER … Continue reading