Arrrgh!!!

I received a referral from the doctor for home health care. We were looking for a nurse to help with her pain management, and a physical therapist to keep her from loosing any further muscle tone while she has to be away from exercise class. I called them last Thursday and was told that they probably wouldn't be able to staff the request until Monday. I've never had to deal with a situation like this, so I didn't realize that I should have told them I'd find someone else.

On Monday, I called them back to ask when we might see a nurse, and was told that Elegante Mother didn't seem to be in their "system." Understandably, I was ticked! We went through the intake process again, and I was told that someone would visit. On the heels of that call, probably less than three minutes later, their co-worker called to say that she had this request with a question mark on it.....did we want someone to see my mother???

I suggested that she call her co-worker and give us a call when they got their act together. Perhaps thirty minutes later, a man called to ask if it would be possible to visit EM in thirty minutes, saying he was a nurse.

Actually, he was there in administrative capacity, to assess whether there was something they could do for EM. After a series of questions he said, "I'm sorry, but there's nothing we can do for you. You don't meet the qualifications." MAN, was I STEAMED!!!! I stood up to indicate the session was at an end and urged him to the door. They had allowed her to go SIX DAYS, waiting for services, when they could have cut that to two, and then told her she didn't qualify! On top of that, we ran out of pain medication on Monday, and I had to go to the doctor's office to pick up meds and a prescription.

My oldest sister is a nurse. She spent a number of years as a home health care nurse prior to her retirement. Both she, and Elegante Mother's doctor felt that EM qualified and couldn't figure out what was going on. We found a Visiting Nurse Association not two miles from our home, and yesterday we started the process all over again!

This time, a woman we knew came to visit, and although the visit was a long one, she got all the information she needed in order to arrange for a nurse, an aide, a physical therapist and possibly an occupational therapist to come through the next two to four weeks.

There was no comparison between the two services. I wish I had chosen the right one to start. We're a week behind on pain management now. Rather than have a nurse, Elegante Mother was stuck with me. While I gave her all the attention possible, it wasn't trained attending.

I like EM's doctor, but I can't say much for the quality of his support staff. Rather than following up on her needs, and seeing to it that messages got to the doctor, that the referrals were faxed to the appropriate offices, and that prescriptions were provided in a timely manner, they had to be asked repeatedly to attend to her needs. I hope the visiting nurse will act as a liaison to cut through this inefficiency.

There was a time in my life when you put yourself in your doctor's hands, and he made all the choices for you. Now, you need to be more pro-active. You have to learn about your illness, the drugs you are taking, and read to see if there are any other ways to resolve your problems. Unfortunately, EM is not in a position to take on that chore.

I can't say that I'm a happy camper as we come to the close of the week, but I hope that things will improve, now.