SamanthaCLE
Forum Ride Along
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On my last shift, my partner and I found ourselves in a bit of an ethical quandary and I was curious how you guys might suggest handling it...
I work for a private ambulance company. My partner and I were dispatched to an ER to transport a 330lb (49yo) woman with polynephritis, right sided weakness s/p previous CVA, mental deficits to her apartment after being discharged. She was in the ED because she called 911 for 'pain in her side'. She's a heavy +2 assist to stand and can only go a step or 2 before becoming SOB and collapsing under her weight.
We transported her home to find that she lives in a dangerous environment for her condition. I opened the door to find a tiny kitchen with a broken office chair next to a broken walker. The office chair was so soiled from her existing in it ALL THE TIME that flies and maggots were emanating from it. There were fly paper strips full of flies and bug spray on the kitchen table next to the chair. It took an incredible amount of effort to get her from the stretcher to the chair. The tiled kitchen area was very small and the rest of the apartment was carpeted. There's no way she can move around in that chair to get to the bathroom or even get a glass of water.
The patient told us that her granddaughter lives there with her but is gone for the weekend and that she has an aide but she will not be coming for a few days. Nothing in the apartment is accessible for her - there's no wheelchair or lift or anything setup for her. The whole situation screams of a patient slipping through the cracks and being taken advantage of. It was obvious to us that she called 911 to go to the ER in the first place because she was unsafe home alone.
It felt awful leaving her in that sitting in that chair but we didn't know what to do for her. I thought about calling the PD to do a wellness check. Is there someone else I can reach out to in order to advocate for her?
I work for a private ambulance company. My partner and I were dispatched to an ER to transport a 330lb (49yo) woman with polynephritis, right sided weakness s/p previous CVA, mental deficits to her apartment after being discharged. She was in the ED because she called 911 for 'pain in her side'. She's a heavy +2 assist to stand and can only go a step or 2 before becoming SOB and collapsing under her weight.
We transported her home to find that she lives in a dangerous environment for her condition. I opened the door to find a tiny kitchen with a broken office chair next to a broken walker. The office chair was so soiled from her existing in it ALL THE TIME that flies and maggots were emanating from it. There were fly paper strips full of flies and bug spray on the kitchen table next to the chair. It took an incredible amount of effort to get her from the stretcher to the chair. The tiled kitchen area was very small and the rest of the apartment was carpeted. There's no way she can move around in that chair to get to the bathroom or even get a glass of water.
The patient told us that her granddaughter lives there with her but is gone for the weekend and that she has an aide but she will not be coming for a few days. Nothing in the apartment is accessible for her - there's no wheelchair or lift or anything setup for her. The whole situation screams of a patient slipping through the cracks and being taken advantage of. It was obvious to us that she called 911 to go to the ER in the first place because she was unsafe home alone.
It felt awful leaving her in that sitting in that chair but we didn't know what to do for her. I thought about calling the PD to do a wellness check. Is there someone else I can reach out to in order to advocate for her?
