Pro-action

Today I was in the office at work finishing my notes, and I started talking with a co-worker about some of the long term care patients. I was telling him about some patient complaints, and how I get the feeling that the CNAs and nurses on the other unit are either 1)mean 2)lazy, or 3)don't care. And I was saying that I feel sorry for the patients on that unit.

My co-worker agreed with my observations. Then he asked, "What are you going to do?" I was a little taken aback. I mean, I do my job- I treat these patients for PT- and I'm a little extra caring and attentive to them since I've realized that they probably don't get the best care at other times. I don't even know which CNAs and nurses are to blame for the problems.

His point was that if we see a wrong, we have to fix it. And it hit me that I can complain about the CNAs and nurses all day long, but it's not going to make a difference. I need to take action and fight for better care for these patients. My co-worker and I came up with some ideas that we're going to implement. A lot of it will just be vigilance and persistence on our part to make sure that these patients are receiving the best possible care. I'm looking forward to see what happens, to see if we can make a difference.

Anyway, on the way out, I saw the staff doctor. I rarely ever see him because he's only there on certain weeknights, usually after all the therapy staff are gone for the day. I have a patient that I'm convinced has Parkinson's, but she's never been diagnosed with it. I'd asked the director of rehab and the director of nursing for a neurological consult (and so had another PT), but so far nothing had happened. I decided to talk to the doctor and mention a few of the signs and symptoms I'd noticed.

He took the time to briefly examine the patient and agreed that she likely had Parkinson's disease. He told me that sometimes with Parkinson's, it's best to just start the patient on meds and see how they respond. Then he asked me if I thought she should start on some Parkinson's meds. I was flabbergasted. Never have I ever been consulted on a medical issue like this! I told him I thought it would be a good idea, and that was it. So easy! After all this time of trying to bring this issue to attention, all it took was one moment of proactive behavior, and my patient may finally receive the meds to manage her symptoms!

I'm excited to see if the drugs help, and I'm motivated even more to be an advocate for my patients! This is what makes my job meaningful- noticing something wrong and doing something about it to make a difference in my patients' lives. Today I loved my job.