Pat

Sorry to advise that Pat who broke a hip last August, from which she had been making a very good recovery, yesterday broke the other one. Pat will be having an operation tomorrow. We wish her a very quick recovery.

Pat had operation on Monday to pin hip and is progressing well.

The following info from Ken:

Just to give you an update on Patricia, but first to recap:
She broke her hip on Sunday (4 March), had an operation on Monday (5th), (no one is sure at this stage whether she had screws in her hip or a partial replacement, least of all Pat), and was 'kicked' out on Thursday (8th). The story goes that the ward was required for male trauma patients.

I won't give you blow by blow but, apparently, they asked her to do a little walk, climb a few stairs, seemed very satisfied with her 'progress' and said she could go home. !!!!!

Following a lengthy conversation with Pat, on Saturday, it would appear that the level of treatment received by her was below an acceptable standard. Starting from her arrival at the hospital when initially the wrong leg for was identified for surgery; a sticker had been attached to the wrong leg and who knows if anyone would have known or cared had they operated on it had not Julie and Fred pointed out the error to staff.

There were many other problems during the short time she was there culminating, ON THE THIRD DAY AFTER HER OPERATION, with her being unceremoniously turfed out without any aids such as commode, walking frame, etc. However, after Pat complained of her inability to walk without aid she was provided with a crutch which had not been adjusted for her use.

Pat's departure from the hospital after such a short while and without any aids was totally unacceptable behaviour on the part of the hospital administration and staff. However, it could well be that if the treatment she received at their hands was the 'best' available, it would appear that she is probably much better off and SAFER at home than remaining in those uncaring and unprofessional hands.

I spoke to her again yesterday. Unfortunately she is not feeling at all well and indeed was violently sick during the previous night. Pat discussed her condition with the District Nurse who, yesterday, came to give her her final injection. The nurse thought the sickness might have been as a result of an infection in the wound, however, after looking she said it appeared to be healing nicely. The nurse offered no further suggestion and left. Perhaps Pat's condition is an after effect of the anaesthetic.

The nurse does not intend to return until it is necessary for the staples, which were used to close the wound, to be removed.

I spoke to Pat today but, unfortunately, I am not able to report good progress. She is suffering a considerable amount of pain as, apparently, the pain killers prescribed for her are of the type one would take for a headache but not after an operation for a fractured hip.

She has requested, through her GP's receptionist, something stronger. The receptionist will put the request to the GP but she doesn't anticipate a response until tomorrow as the Doctor is very busy on a Monday. Good for him, however, I just hope he is not suffering any pain.

Anne, Lu, Ken and I visited Pat about 10 days ago and found that whilst still in pain she is progressing well. We arrived after a week of disruption during which Janice, Tony, David, Lee and Fred had been decorating the lounge and found her in pretty good spirits. She is able to manage the staircase fairly well but finds standing for more than a short while still very difficult. The enforced rest is becoming a considerable annoyance to her as she would like to be able to cook and do normal household tasks; Pat enjoy it while you are able.
Pat, with the help of Julie, wrote to the hospital to register her complaint about the level of care she had received during her last visit but received in reply letters which made one wonder if Pat and the administration were discussing the same case. I despair, a little, about the hospital's ability/willingness to provide a good nursing service but someone there appears to have a real talent for story telling.