minutes of a meeting...

Natashalou

Registered User
Mar 22, 2007
426
0
london
today I received my first copy of minutes of the 3 monthly relatives meeting held at my mothers nursing home.I thought this seemd a good idea and it seemed to contain details of new things being bought for the home, planned outings etc, but at the end was something that worried me and I havent stopped thinkin about it all day.
This was condolonces to the families of those recently deceased. There was a list of six names. This, I assume means six residents died in the last three months? Well, ok it is a nursing home but this seems a very high number. Is there any data collected in deaths in care that I could comapre how hight this is comapred to the average?
 

Grannie G

Volunteer Moderator
Apr 3, 2006
81,443
0
Kent
Hi Natasha,

I can understand you being upset by 6 deaths in 3 months, but first I`d ask a couple of questions.

1] How many residents in the home
2] How many deaths in other periods of 3 months

If the home is publicising these deaths by offering condolences, I wouldn`t think they have anything to hide. It`s just a shock to you.

Take care
 

Brucie

Registered User
Jan 31, 2004
12,413
0
near London
It will depend on the state of health of residents when they came to the home as well.

I have found at Jan's home that deaths tend to come in clusters, for no obvious reason - they are not related by any bug or anything.
 

jenniferpa

Registered User
Jun 27, 2006
39,442
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And I imagine the 3 months we're talking about are January through March? I imagine that more elderly people die at this time of year due to respiratory infections.

Jennifer
 

Norman

Registered User
Oct 9, 2003
4,348
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Birmingham Hades
Two questions to think about.
How many residents does the home hav?
Can you have look at the annual list of deaths?
This will give picture over a period.
Norman
 

noelphobic

Registered User
Feb 24, 2006
3,452
0
Liverpool
My mum was in an EMI home for a year and has now been in a nursing home for about 15 months. I have noticed since she moved into the nursing home that there do seem to be deaths more frequently, and this did disturb me at first. However, most of the people in the nursing home are very old and most of them are very ill indeed, or they probably wouldn't be in the nursing home in the first place. There do also often seem to be clusters - between March 9th and March 27th there were 4 deaths that I know of! I also bear in mind the fact that some people are only moved into a nursing home when they are in a very bad way, so many of the deaths are far from unexpected.

I always have an idea that there has been a funeral when there are a lot of flowers in the home so don't get any pleasure from seeing lovely floral arrangements!

I have a feeling that deaths in resdential homes are monitored and if there was a ridiculously high number of deaths within a short period of time then an investigation would be instigated.

Brenda
 

sue38

Registered User
Mar 6, 2007
10,849
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55
Wigan, Lancs
As others have advised, I would look more at the stats before you panic too much about this. A very dear friend of my family lived in a care home for many years and had a theory that deaths in the home always happened in 3s. Although we were devastated when she died 'suddenly' at the age of 94 we couldn't help but smile that she was the 'number 3' and had proved her own theory. :)

Sue xx
 

Canadian Joanne

Registered User
Apr 8, 2005
17,710
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70
Toronto, Canada
Yes, the residents of a nursing home are already in a very fragile medical state. My mother's unit of 30 residents had 4 deaths in about 4 weeks. There was a cough/cold going around. But the residents that died were in their 80s & 90s. Not easy for the families but still they all had had long lives.

Certainly the winter cannot help things. Not just the cold, I think the long nights are very depressing. That must have some kind of effect on people, it certainly does on me.

Joanne
 

Brucie

Registered User
Jan 31, 2004
12,413
0
near London
From what I've seen, 3 does seem to be a significant number.

There have been none at Jan's home for 18 months now, so there can also be quite long periods of stability.
 

Lila13

Registered User
Feb 24, 2006
1,342
0
Of course I wondered about the death rate in the ward where my mother died.

There were a lot of deaths in a home which my mother used to visit, but I think they were near death when they were moved in there, not a lot of flowers as most of them didn't have relations or friends near enough, the manager always pretended that the person had been sent to hospital or to another home, of course residents knew when they were being lied to. That home closed, not because of all the rules they were breaking, but because the woman running it got too ill.

Lila
 

noelphobic

Registered User
Feb 24, 2006
3,452
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Liverpool
Quite often there will be an 'order of service' from a funeral on the notice board in my mum's nursing home, also there are often thank you cards which mention that the loved one has died. So there is no real attempt to hide anything and I would feel it was wrong if there was.

Brenda
 

noelphobic

Registered User
Feb 24, 2006
3,452
0
Liverpool
My mum's been a lot better lately, touch wood. She is eating and drinking a lot more and is more alert. The speech therapist came this week and said that she does still have a swallow reflex, but that it is slow. I assume that means that she should be fed slowly. I did manage to get her to drink most of a beaker of Ensure the last time I went and I think she is having those in addition to her meals. At least the issue of PEG feeding can be put to one side, for the time being at least :)

Thanks for asking Hazel. I also managed to get my OU assignment finally finished :D
 

Grannie G

Volunteer Moderator
Apr 3, 2006
81,443
0
Kent
Good for you Brenda, to finish an assignment whilst having so much worry is strong minded indeed.
 

Skye

Registered User
Aug 29, 2006
17,000
0
SW Scotland
Hi Brenda

Great news about your mum. I'm glad she's managing to take some nourishment at least. It must be a weight off your mind.

And well done for finishing the assignment. Just one more to go? :)

Love,