When I accepted a position in Albany for work, my greatest concern was finding a quality school district with staff that cared. After I had the chance to talk to Schenectady Associate Superintendent Gary Comley and guidance counselor Matt Mortier, I was convinced that I wanted to move to Schenectady and have my family be a part of this community. Schenectady High School may not be perfect, but the staff and coaches I have talked to took the time to care about how my kids could transition to the area and be successful and were so positive and encouraging. That was the deciding factor in our decision to move to Schenectady in August. SANDRA MCANANY Norwalk, Wisc.
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MobileTerminal
July 30, 2008, 6:10am
Guest User
Watch for this name on the ballot next year folks ...
An alternative to restraining the elderly By Sandra McAnany | Community columnist
In 2004, my grandmother was hospitalized in Western Wisconsin for over three months. During this period she was confused at times and lost physical functions and strength.
When she was in a regular room, she had an incident in which she pulled out her endotracheal tube for her ventilator. She was alone in her hospital room, unable to breathe at all until the nursing staff reinserted her tube and rushed her back to intensive care. After this, she was placed in restraints and spent hours feebly struggling and not understanding why she was tied down to her hospital bed. Restraints were the method that the hospital and nursing staff chose to use to prevent her from pulling out her tubes once again.
When my grandmother became confused, pulled out her ventilator tube and then was physically restrained and tied down, she was part of a nationwide issue that families across the country deal with every day. Elderly hospital patients face risks when hospitalized and often enter the hospital able to walk and do the activities of daily living. By the time that some leave, they are dependent and unable to perform these functions.
According to GeroNurse Online, 25 percent to 60 percent of elderly patients are at risk of losing physical function while hospitalized. Another major risk of hospitalization is delirium, which complicates the hospital stay of more than 2 million to 3 million elderly patients per year in the United States, involving more than 17.5 million inpatient days and accounts for over $4 billion in Medicare expenditures. An additional risk that elderly patients face while hospitalized is falls, which an estimated one in five hospitalized elderly patients will experience. They also face the stress of having a change in their health status as well as being separated from their family and friends.
The elderly could be cared for differently to lower the risks of delirium, falls and losses of physical function. In 2004, the William S. Middleton Veterans Memorial Hospital in Madison started a Patient Safety Helper Initiative.
The veteran patients who are at the highest risk of falling, dislodging life-saving equipment, wandering or confusion are monitored by a patient safety helper 24 hours a day. An average of three patients per day receive this service. Patient safety helpers prevent the patient from removing their tubes while confused, help the patient to remain calm, provide diversional activities and help the patient with doing as many activities as possible.
The costs for the patient safety helper program do add up, but there is no way to put a price on the benefits of the increased quality of life for the patents that have a helper and the injuries that the usage of helpers has prevented.
The model that the William S. Middleton Veterans Memorial Hospital has developed for the care of veteran patients could be used as the expected standard of care for all elderly patients in Wisconsin.
Why should anyone’s grandparent have to be confused, alone and tied down to a hospital bed when a program like this could be used as an alternative?
Sandra McAnany of Norwalk, Wis., is one of 12 Tribune community columnists, whose writing appears on the Sunday Opinion pages. .
Perhaps she will get a nice job with the Gazette. Perhaps as a columnist? She had to have an 'in' with someone to write that editorial. I don't think it is all that innocent. And perhaps the dictatorship will create a job for Ms. Sandra as well, huh? We will probably see her name coming up in the future....just watch and see!
Cause I still say that no one would move to Schenectady 'on purpose'....unless there was something to gain from it!
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
Maybe being elderly (whatever the definition is depending on your perspective), should be an indication of when to stop choosing barbaric medical procedures..... no one other than ourselves should make that decision, but, if society would educate about aging and stop the MTV crap, maybe folks wouldn't be so surprised when they 'get there'.....working in a nursing home, it never ceases to amaze me how folks on the 'outside' are shocked and out of reality when visiting......just wait until the boomers move through, and that is a giant number of 'elderly folks'......there is a grounding with being exposed to aging and the aged......is it depressing---nope---it just is........
...you are a product of your environment, your environment is a product of your priorities, your priorities are a product of you......
The replacement of morality and conscience with law produces a deadly paradox.
STOP BEING GOOD DEMOCRATS---STOP BEING GOOD REPUBLICANS--START BEING GOOD AMERICANS
Just found the posts after writing the original letter to the editor. Still happy iwth Schenectady, not looking for a job at the Gazette and no, we really did not know anyone here.
Hi Sarah and glad you stumbled upon us. And yes, Mobil is correct. As dysfunctional as our county is, we call it home with our many friends and family.
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
Welcome to the site and welcome to Schenectady County, Sandra. We can all be a bit dysfunctional, but we also have times that we really can figure out a way to pull it together. Welcome to NYS and we hope that you'll share some of your input, it's always nice to see things from someone elses point of view. We hope that you won't be a one time poster and that you'll let us know your thoughts.
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no one other than ourselves should make that decision, but, if society would educate about aging and stop the MTV crap, maybe folks wouldn't be so surprised when they 'get there'.....working in a nursing home, it never ceases to amaze me how folks on the 'outside' are shocked and out of reality when visiting......just wait until the boomers move through, and that is a giant number of 'elderly folks'......there is a grounding with being exposed to aging and the aged......is it depressing---nope---it just is........
