Elnut needs a lot of prayers

[elnutsmalljaws]

I appreciate all the comments. Talked to my surgeon today plus some other people and they think I need LONG TERM in patient help. They say I need to be put back on the drugs at a higher dose than I was and then slowly over long term in patient stay taken off of them. I have been in the hospital enough and think I am at least going to try and make it thru the weekend. My wife and son will be with me all the time so I am not alone during the day and that will help. I am better today than I was yesterday and hope the worse is behind me. Thanks again for all the prayers.

I will say that I have been double dosed now 3 times during my hospital stay. This last time was the first at UK and the previous 2 times I was given 8 mgrams of dalaudid and 50 mg of phenogren TWICE at St. Joe. All 3 were honest mistakes but I have learned that EVERY time a nurse comes in to give me something, I ask what and how much. I did not learn this until last Wednesday but will from now on. I know that on 1 occasion in the ER a nurse was about to give me Morphine and I am allergic to that drug and it was duely noted on my file but the doctor did not notice it and prescribed it. Luckily I asked what she was giving me before and it was caught. I can only imagin how many times a day patients are given the wrong amount or the wrong drug in hospitals. It should not happen and there should be checks and balances in place to stop this but evidently there are not enough. Maybe when I get better and can go back to work I will apply for this job at the local hospital here in Frankfort.

[Fred1972]

Elwood,
I sure hope the worst of it is behind you. Keep plugging away buddy! Won't be long till we will be bringing in the big brown fish!

[elnutsmalljaws]

10:30 and it has been a pretty good day. Only a few moments of despair but phone calls with Dave Stewart, Chunknwind, 3sons and Bonefish plus having my wife and son home with me since about 5 has really helped. If I could only get some sleep tonight I would feel even better. Again thanks for the prayers.

Side note: had several discussions with my surgeon, family doctor and detox people here in town and it was decided that I was not a candidate for a 5 day in patient detox program but they wanted to put me in LONG TERM inpatient detox where they actually put me on higher doses of Narcotics than I was and then slowly take me off of them with a drug called Methodone, which tricks your body into thinking it is getting the Narcotic portion but it is not addicting so when you are done your body is not expecting or needing the drug. I have been away from my wife and son long enough and told them that if I was worse on Monday then maybe I would come in but hopefully with my wife and son with me the next two days, I will get even better. Have a trip planned with 3sons to Ky Lake to leave next Friday for 3 days and if I can make it to that and do something "normal" for a change will do a world of good. I know last December when I went thru 4 straight months and 4 surgeries that after I quit cold turkey and my buddy Chunknwind and I hit Dale Hollow a few days later the sight of Holly Creek was the greatest sight that I had seen in a LONG time. My buddy said he saw it on my face and then I went out and caught a 4-8, 4-9 and 5-1 on my #1 favorite honey hole in the first 15 minutes. He said that nobody deserved the first one more, then was even happier on the second but said that was enough on #3. He did catch a couple of unders in the same spot to narrow the margin to 3-2 but it just wasnt the same according to him. I don't know what he was complaining about with my 14lb sack to his 4 1/2 lb sack we had 18 and change for all 3 of mine measured as overs in a five fish limit, I know the 1 under and 1 over rule per person. But even bringing in 14 and change with 2 overs and 2 unders wins just about every Smallmouth Only tourney down there. Maybe I can pull into Ky next Friday afternoon and catch that 10 plus pounder Greenfish that I had on in April off North Barkley for a little compensation for what I have been and am going thru. I promise to give her a kiss and promise to let her loose after several pictures. I would even lower my standards and take a 12lb Brownfish if she wanted to come and visit and again promise to turn her loose after giving her a kiss and she spent a little bit of time in my boat width deep v huge livewell until I could get her officially weighed and measured but she would also swim free from my hands, no doubt.

[DYNATRAK]

hang in there elnut.

[big wormy]

Elnut,
BEFORE YOU START METHODONE, ASK ABOUT SUBOXONE. Methadone can be harder for some people to get off of than the pain meds. A lot of side effects. If you are still in bad pain, you may have to take methadone because it is a pain killer. Suboxone blocks pain killers(opiates) and stops withdraws with one dose. It to has withdraws but they are not very bad. Problem with them is if you are still in bad pain they don't help, and you have to stop taking them for 3 days for pain meds to work.

I have prayed for you from the first post many months ago, hang in there you are a true man.

BW

[elnutsmalljaws]

Elnut,
BEFORE YOU START METHODONE, ASK ABOUT SUBOXONE. Methadone can be harder for some people to get off of than the pain meds. A lot of side effects. If you are still in bad pain, you may have to take methadone because it is a pain killer. Suboxone blocks pain killers(opiates) and stops withdraws with one dose. It to has withdraws but they are not very bad. Problem with them is if you are still in bad pain they don't help, and you have to stop taking them for 3 days for pain meds to work.

I have prayed for you from the first post many months ago, hang in there you are a true man.

BW

thanks BW, I am always in pain with 24 surgeries in my abdominal area in 4 years and all the scar tissue I live with 5 out of 10 pain scale all the time. I h
ave learned to deal with this without any pain meds. I don't need any pain meds but if I can't get thru this on my own I will ask the question about Suboxone. Thanks

[RICHYD4U]

I will say that I have been double dosed now 3 times during my hospital stay. This last time was the first at UK and the previous 2 times I was given 8 mgrams of dalaudid and 50 mg of phenogren TWICE at St. Joe. All 3 were honest mistakes but I have learned that EVERY time a nurse comes in to give me something, I ask what and how much. I did not learn this until last Wednesday but will from now on. I know that on 1 occasion in the ER a nurse was about to give me Morphine and I am allergic to that drug and it was duely noted on my file but the doctor did not notice it and prescribed it. Luckily I asked what she was giving me before and it was caught. I can only imagin how many times a day patients are given the wrong amount or the wrong drug in hospitals. It should not happen and there should be checks and balances in place to stop this but evidently there are not enough. Maybe when I get better and can go back to work I will apply for this job at the local hospital here in Frankfort.

Speaking from an RNs point of view, it happens all the time (unfortunately). Our facility has many check points in place to prevent this, however, humans are still in charge...and humans aren't perfect. I make it a practice to state every medication I am giving to a patient just for that reason....if for any reason (patients or us) I am about to administer a drug that the patient is allergic to, by telling them what I am giving them....it will be caught. Like I said, nothing in this world is perfect, mistakes will happen. You just hope that when those mistakens do occur, that they are not life threatening.

Hope you get feeling better, and our prayers are with you.

Fish on!

-Rich

[elnutsmalljaws]

Speaking from an RNs point of view, it happens all the time (unfortunately). Our facility has many check points in place to prevent this, however, humans are still in charge...and humans aren't perfect. I make it a practice to state every medication I am giving to a patient just for that reason....if for any reason (patients or us) I am about to administer a drug that the patient is allergic to, by telling them what I am giving them....it will be caught. Like I said, nothing in this world is perfect, mistakes will happen. You just hope that when those mistakens do occur, that they are not life threatening.

Hope you get feeling better, and our prayers are with you.

Fish on!

-Rich

I know the drugs come from the pharmacy, is there not a computer program to where the prescribed medications are input and therefore if a nurse/doctor/pharmacist orders or sends up the wrong medication or the wrong amount of medication that it will send an error or not process the request. I have to think there is something that can prevent this. To me it seems pretty simple and maybe I am making this way more simpler than the process is but:

The medication is prescibed with appropriate dose and how often, it is input into the system. The nurse goes to process a request for the medication, inputting what they want and how much. The computer should say either ok this is acceptable or you have input the wrong dosage or medication. If it is ok then it goes to the hospital pharmacy for processing to be sent back up to the nurse. Even on the pharmacy side, the same check should be in place that should not allow them to send up a wrong amount or medication. I do understand that some pain meds come in 2mg containers and sometimes only 1mg is prescribed so the nurse draws out the appropriate amount and throws away the rest, which is only controlled by human error. But to be prescribed 2mg every 2hr and then to be given 4mg every 2 hr, 6 DIFFERENT TIMES, sure does seem like more than human error. Seems that when the nurse came in the other morning to try and give me Morphine when it has been clearly noted on every hospital visit to UK, probably 30 or so different visits and it is clearly asked in triage and noted on every piece of paper that I have ever seen, I don't see any excuse for her to come in and try and administer Morphine in the ER. Obviously the doctor in the ER told her what to give me and he missed it in the chart and the nurse did what is expected, probably doing it hastily to help me due to my pain, which I appreciate but again seems there should be a check and balance in place for this. I was talking to one of my buddy's last night that works at UK Hospital about the healthcare system and he said that this very thing was discussed in a meeting yesterday morning. I know people get complacent in their jobs and I know I could not be a nurse or doctor dealing with sick people on a daily basis but I also know there are some professions that CAN"T become complacent or people will die, Police Officer, Fire Fighter, Nurse, Doctor, Surgeons, Anethesiologist, Pilots, even driving a car you can't become complacent. I am a little shocked that it happens "all the time" and appreciate your honesty and can only imagine how many times a day with 500-1000 patients a day in UK versus how many doses of medicine is given to EACH patient it happens. My bet is that if it was tracked, there would be a lot of Hospital Administrators out on the street looking for a job and a lot of Medical malpractise suits, which only causes insurance rates to go even higher, so it is a merry go round of never ending problems. I do know that I will ask every time for unlike you, not every nurse states the medication and amount they are giving to each person. To my knowledge they are suppose to check the wrist band and make sure I am who I am before as well but that hardly never happens. Thanks again for your honesty. The rest is just my opinion on the topic from a Professional Patients point of view. I know if I was a Hospital Administrator and has someone like me with 20 years of manufacturing management experience and 4 years of professional patient experience, I would love to have someone like me in the hospital in some role of this quality control sort. One thing for sure, I would almost bet I am in pretty rare company with that type of resume to offer, knowing what I know and see on a daily basis 24/7 in the hospital as a patient with the common sense to know that things could be run a little differently and more efficiently.

[Shimano4Life]

Hang in there, Elnut. Put your faith in HIM and he will get you through any troubles that may come your way. Until the storm passes, you will remain in my prayers my friend.