Grandad's in hospital

[Grandaughter 1]

Well after the palava (sp) of Grandad being moved from the Nursing home to a care home because he "escaped", Grandad is now in hospital after a fall on Thursday evening.

He fell head first onto his forehead. The care home said that he was a bit "out of it" and had an "egg head" so they called an ambulance. He's been transferred from one hospital to another and is now waiting a CT scan. I don't understand all this as when he fell and gashed his head badly at Xmas they discharged him after an hour! He appears to be no different than normal so it is very puzzling.

One thing that is puzzling the care home is the fact that for the whole 4 weeks Grandad was in the nursing home he had no falls whatsover and yet he has been in the care home 8 days and has had 6 falls which pretty much tallies in with how many falls he was having when he was at home with Nan.

It makes me wonder what the nursing home got up to - did they tie him to his chair or something !!!??!!!!??!

My poor Grandad must be soooo confused and to top it all the CT scan is going to be so distressing for him as he didn't like the last one he had much when he had his Dementia with Lewy bodies diagnosed.

Take care all

Louise xxx

 

[jenniferpa]

To be honest, Louise, my first thought is that he did fall in the nursing home, but they simply didn't tell you. That, or that he was sedated. Having said that though, and recognising that falls are very difficult to stop, (going through this at the moment with my mother) I would be asking just how and when he is falling now: are there any particular times or situations?

Jennifer

 

[Grandaughter 1]

I did wonder if they were sedating Grandad but Nan said they couldn't do that without permission. Whether that sort of thing goes on in homes and we aren't told I do not know

There are no particular times he falls over. He just tries to walk too fast (part of the lewy bodies and parkinism apparantly?) and has a curved spine so tends to always fall flat on his face generally.

The falls are the hardest thing to deal with I reckon as the home can deal with most things but they can't stop Grandad having them unless they make him sit down 24/7.

It is interesting though that the care home are questioning how the nursing home managed to avoid these falls. I'm sure he would have had outward injuries if they weren't telling us.

 

[Margarita]

He just tries to walk too fast

Now that very interesting to know as I just posted in another thread about fall and that my mother whizzes so fast as is more likely to have a fall soon , she always forgets her Zimmer frame if I am not around

My mother had a fall not long ago to the head and they sent her home after a chech up , then we had to go back again and they did a CT scan I was very worried that she would not like CT scan as she also did not like first one , but I was amazed how will she cope with 2CT scan .

 

[janjan]

Louise, My dad has the same as your grandad, and i've noticed some days he walks faster than other days. Two weeks ago he had a fall in his n/home, but nobody saw him do it so we are unsure wether he fell out of bed or just tripped up. He had a bad bruise on his chin.
They are ok with him in his n/home, with his wandering, because it is a EMI unit.
But i am so tempted to say to one of the carers, who sometimes moanes about him wondering around ;Well there's nothing wrong with his legs, sorry but it doe's irritate me, i bet most of the people in wheele chairs, if they could use there legs they would be wondering around as well if they could.

 

[Margarita]

i bet most of the people in wheele chairs, if they could use there legs they would be wondering around as well if they could.

You right there , as my OT says to encourage mum to keep mobile , to walk up down stairs to bath room rather then get stair lift , as long as my mother got a grip on banter she fine , she more likely to grip the walls hold on to that , when she determined to walk on her own . It’s in her brain that she losing the balance not her legs , that’s why I suppose when it gets worse with the AZ in the brain its harder to keep an eye on them 27/4 at home , and even in care home I am now relishing from reading in TP .

I was told years ago that it gets worse with the walking, but till I experience it I did not know what they meant by worse, is that what they call spiral?

but then thinking about those in the wheele chairs , the spiral part could have been really danmage with the Disease in the brain.

Thats why I encourage my mother to walk as much as she can till she gets to that stage .

 

[jenniferpa]

Something that did occur to me: what is the flooring like in each of these places? I read a report somewhere that talked about how critical pattern was when it came to falls - any kind of pattern can look like steps or obstructions and that can make falls more likely.

 

[Nell]

I don't know if this helps, but . . . . .
If a child has balance problems, she / he will often walk faster. It seems to "help" balance - or at least the feeling of balance. I'm not sure how this works but I do know that as a teacher of children with disabilities, we constantly encourage the children to "take their time" and not "rush".

If you want to experience the sensation for yourself, try walking along a very narrow board or ledge or wall - even "normal" people tend to do it fast to maintain balance.


Whether your loved ones are experiencing something similar, I don't know. And sadly, I don't have any answers either! Nell

 

[Margarita]

If a child has balance problems, she / he will often walk faster.

Yes I was thinking alone those line last night taking to my daughter, as I remember when my children started to learn to walk, how they would walk fast towards me and I would catch them before they fall , or give then a walking thing to help them learn to get they balance and give them the confidence to walk alone , so at that age the brain was developing to learn that balance and walk , but with dementia / AZ , the disease is distorting that part of the brain that give out that signal in how to walk so distorting the learn behaviour of how to walk, with all that is going on in the brain with someone with AZ , it’s no wonder they have so many falls as in forgetting they can not walk so good , like my mother on a good day that those signal in the brain reconnect some how and thinks she can walk normal , especially when OT ask her to show her to show her how she can walk , mum walks really fast with Zimmer frame , that if she did not have Zimmer frame she would go flying smack down on the floor when she stops , as Zimmer frame hold her balance when she stops , and then yes me holding side of Zimmer frame as she stops . Reminding me when my children would crash walker into wall and they stop.

It is sad, but they is so much prevention that can be done, as long as those around the person recognize what is happening to the person. so can learn to see an accident before it happens even if the person with the AZ is in denial we don’t have to be. But but it can happen even at home with a carer or in a care home , nothing is 100percent fool proof , I am just talking about my own experience in how I am learning to live with AZ

 

[Tender Face]

Falls

Hi Louise ....

Sorry to hear about your grandad - one thought - are the falls directly related to your grandad's dementia.....? Or is there another underlying medical condition?

My mum went through a spell of falls some years ago - pre dementia days ... put down to her osteo-athritis ... I know that wouldn't explain this situation - but could there be something - even changes of medication - not necessarily sedatives - which could explain all this? That, and just basic environmental factors which may have been different ...... as Jennifer has suggested? The nursing home may well have some answers to help everyone!

I hope your grandad doesn't find the CT scan too distressing,

Love Karen, x

 

[Grandaughter 1]

Hi Louise ....

Sorry to hear about your grandad - one thought - are the falls directly related to your grandad's dementia.....? Or is there another underlying medical condition?

My mum went through a spell of falls some years ago - pre dementia days ... put down to her osteo-athritis ... I know that wouldn't explain this situation - but could there be something - even changes of medication - not necessarily sedatives - which could explain all this? That, and just basic environmental factors which may have been different ...... as Jennifer has suggested? The nursing home may well have some answers to help everyone!

I hope your grandad doesn't find the CT scan too distressing,

Love Karen, x

I think his falls are all related to old age (he's 85) his dementia and parkinisms etc. Grandad isn't on any medication at all.

We don't even know if he is going back to the home as when I spoke to the hospital about when he would be discharged they said something about not knowing whether the home will take him. The scan is booked for tomorrow so hopefully we'll know more then.

Thanks

Louise x

 

[janjan]

Hi Louise, let us know how grandad gets on tomorrow. Janet

 

[Grandaughter 1]

Hi everyone,

Well Nan just called as she visited Grandad today. They haven't done the scan at all! They said they've got 3 more people waiting and they don't know when they'll do it.
When my Nan told them he had a scan last April and he was diagnosed with Dementia with Lewy Bodies they didn't have a clue what she was talking about! What happened to hospital records and computers recording all this sort of information!??!? The nurse said she'd never heard of Lewy Bodies either.

Nan said Grandad didn't seem any different from normal apart from a grazed head. He smiled when Nan came in, then he nodded off. When he kept waking from his sleep after that he kept looking at Nan and crying, almost like a puppy whimpering.

They don't seem in any hurry to want Grandad discharged as they said he is too ill. I don't understand this at all as the amount of times we had to call an ambulance for Grandad when he fell at home was ridiculous. They used to just stitch/patch him up and send him home.

Oh well, all we can do is wait and hope the doctors know about Grandads condition then the nurse seemed to.

Take care

Louise

 

[Skye]

They haven't done the scan at all! They said they've got 3 more people waiting and they don't know when they'll do it.
When my Nan told them he had a scan last April and he was diagnosed with Dementia with Lewy Bodies they didn't have a clue what she was talking about! What happened to hospital records and computers recording all this sort of information!??!? The nurse said she'd never heard of Lewy Bodies either.

Hi Louise

What a sad indictment of the NHS in action.

There have been so many post recently about people being kept waiting for scans. It certainly seems that the elderly are low-priority.

And it's shameful that they had no record of his earlier scan, and hadn't even heard of Lewy Bodies.

I do hope that the doctors are more clued up, and they manage to get your Granddad stabilised.

Love,

 

[jenniferpa]

My mother never got a scan either: do not tell me they don't ration health care for the elderly, becasue I won't believe it. As to records: well I left my home number, my UK cell phone number, my US number, the care manager's number and my mother's home number the last time she was in hospital and who did they call (I found out today)? A friend of my mother who was with her when she had her third stroke 18 months ago! It beggars belief, it really does.

Jennifer

 

[Grandaughter 1]

I think I have been watching too many episodes of Casualty and believing it to be realistic!

So many times on that programme they just go to the reception desk and call up the patients note on the computer and hey-bingo they're sorted!!!!!

Jennifer - it didn't even cross my mind about rationing the scanner and costs and stuff. I'm just not clued up on hospitals at all as this is the first time Grandad has been admitted.

 

[Nels]

We could have a gigantic thread just on our experiences of the NHS........ sorry have had a torrid time recently with MIL and over the years with mum, spoke to a dreadful doc on Monday at the rehab unit on Monday, thank god for an OT who is on the ball and has 'sussed' MIL.

 

[jenniferpa]

Pertinent to my point above see this story from the BBC

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6357627.stm

 

[Grandaughter 1]

Update - Well Grandads still in hospital and there is still no sign of him having the scan done The SW have said that if he isn't discharged soon he could lose his respite place at the care home and then they'll have to find him somewhere else!!

This is getting ridiculous now. Nan has visited Grandad and says he seems no different to before yet the hospital say he is not well enough to be discharged. I don't get it!

The social worker has been on a course all week and has apologised for not being there but has said she will get on to the hospital and care home on Monday to see what she can do.

Has anyone else had a similar experience as I thought there was a hospital bed shortage yet they don't seem in a hurry to get rid of my Grandad!

 

[jenniferpa]

Find out who his consultant is, then call and ask for an appointment (either in person or via phone). Both times I've done that, I've not spoken to the consultant, but the next day Mummy has been discharged! It may be a coincidence, but may be not: worth a try at any rate (anyway, I'd be interested in if this works for anyone else).

Jennifer