My grandmother had a stroke about 1 year and a half ago, it was mild so she just needed a bit of rehabilitation. After a few months she then had another stroke which left her in a vegatable state. She was at a hospital that didn't take the best care of her which caused her to get ganggrene and lose her leg from the knee down.

She is 78 years old and it seems there's no hope for her to get well again, so i was wondering how long she'll have to suffer like this? I don't like to see her like this and i know she doesn't want to live like that.


Any information will be great

charlotte234s

I would sue that hospital first off for the negligence.

J_9

There is no telling how long she will or will not live. That is up to her to be honest with you. I would, however, find an attorney specializing in medical malpractice to see if you can sue that facility as well as the nurses who were supposed to be taking care of her.

This happens more than you want to know in rehab centers and nursing homes.

charlotte234s

Yeah there is no excuse for people to get bedsores or gangrene like that, they should be checking her limbs, back, etc., every day and washing her with a warm clean towel daily as well, that is most definitely negligence and you should not let them get away with it.

J_9

Charlotte, have you ever worked in a nursing home or long-term care facility?

While it is not impossible, it is hard to take care of every patient, turn them ALL every 2 hours, bathe each and every one, hand out meds, change linens.....especially when you are understaffed.

Many of these people come to the units already with pressure ulcers that are so far gone they will never heal 100%.

Certain ailments, such as diabetes, predispose some people to pressure ulcers much quicker than the healthier people.

Unfortunately, sometimes it is just unavoidable.

charlotte234s

Not in a nursing care facility, but I've spent time in hospital, and I know it is hard to care for all the patients, but there isn't any excuse for them to let her develop gangrene and not do anything about it, so unless it was a condition they couldn't have prevented, I really do think they are at fault.

J_9

It could have happened before she reached the particular facility in question. We don't know the particulars.

Once a pressure ulcer develops it never heals back to 100% again. NEVER.

And, as I said, certain illnesses can cause it to happen extremely rapidly, like diabetes or inadequate tissue perfusion.

pie812

tickle

So where was the doctor assigned to the nursing home while all this was going on? Someone in authority must have ordered some kind of treatment the nurse and/or PSWs were following.

marbelle

As everybody knows nurses shortages are all over the world plus the fact that nurses are not well compensated (business schools get more admission than nursing schools). You can consult a legal nurse consultant if you want to press charges against the hospital that took care your grandma. But right now I think you and the other members of the family should focus on improving your grandma's health condition and quality of life. If she is at home or in a nursing home, make sure that she receives the medical help she needs. She might be both diabetic and hypertensive, the reason of her 2nd stroke might be due to her not well controlled diabetes or high blood pressure. Another advice that could be helpful is that in the patient care plan make sure that you as a family member should be actively involved, ask questions if you have to and make sure that the health team who is taking care of the patient knows what they are doing. Always remember, in every step of patient care the family should be notified or included in the plan except of course on an emergency situation.