Hi Hops,
To tell it like it is, I have to mention the paralysis of 1969, as that was when my legs, particularly my lower legs began with poor circulation because of the paralysis. I had no problems for 40 years being diligent in skin care, etc. and no pain (from the accident), but my legs kept on demineralizing.
Then 5 years ago, 2009, that car backed out and hit me, breaking an upper leg bone, bringing on excruciating pain (femur, hip end) That’s when I was so drugged, that I was treated for Tourette’s Syndrome and Schizophrenia. I read these on the reports in the spring of 2012 and the case was settled in 2013. So for 44½ years I was still in fairly good shape even “without a left hip’, with the pain lessening, to next to nothing when the Polymyagia Rheumatica set in and caused weakness then pain in my arms and I am on prednisone. I learned that that drug can weaken the bones. I was already in “enough trouble“. I was left with worse balance, now having no hip and any one of my falls could have broken something, and suddenly one did, Dec 18, 2013.
No surgery, for bone condition so a knee brace was recommended and I had never known of such a thing. It was heavy plastic, material and Velcro, with a circular security piece placed at either side of the knee, but was prone to sliding with movement (as it was not held up by a rope around my neck, for instance.) The rules posted for the nurses was that my leg was to be tended to daily (and I didn’t figure out why except that would be when it was washed for me.) It was also to keep an eye on my skin, adjust the slippage etc. This was NOT done! Some nurses never saw that brace before and “were afraid” and refused to touch it. One said it wasn’t in his Union Contract. When Karla visited one day she saw how those “circles” were too low, and undid the straps to find the beginning of a wound at my ankle, from the bottom of the brace being too low. The brace had to be undone, my broken leg lifted out, washed, the stockinet changed, brace adjusted and re-strapped in a special order of the 5 straps.
I don’t know how much responsibility I bear, but would have been more aware if they tended to me daily (after 2 weeks I wore the original stockinet to Cottonwoods…..run by hospital... and I had only one change of stockinet while in Cottonwoods, plus I was aware of the pain and the broken bone and how was this strange brace working? So 2 weeks of very few ministrations, while the compromised skin on my lower leg rested on this hard plastic and, feeling nothing, it broke down a little more each day while I know now for a fact it was never removed from the brace, nor the skin underneath ever checked. Cottonwoods for 4 more weeks--"short term stay" until it is felt the patient can go home. 4 checks in those four weeks and all I could see was the one on my inner ankle.
Arrangements were set up for Home Care and the first nurse, Cathie, remarked immediately how this ought to never have happened and told me about the sores in which areas. She took pictures and wrote up a report for some “tops dogs! I had Home Care until I was rid of the brace but not healed at 2 months, and only able to go to the clinic myself when I felt safe without the cast and an only partially healed bone. (I still hold my knee in place as my lower leg is moved to get to all the sores.
The schizophrenia is still on my chart, as I was asked by a nurse this past Monday. She almost didn’t ask, she said, because she felt it wasn’t true. I asked if this would be following me around and I forget if she had said she would follow it up….how can records be changed, when the attending doctor has left the area? I saw him only once and did not know what was on my reports!
Onward to reply to lighter
Xx
Izzy
