How to Watch Out for Someone's Best Interests in the Hospital

/Home/Alzheimer's and Surgery/Alzheimer's and Hospitalization

In the hospital a person with dementia is at greater risk than others, so be ready to keep tabs on treatments, ask questions, and act as an advocate.

* If the Patients' Bill of Rights is not posted in a place where it can be seen, ask for a copy.
* Agree only to treatments that have been thoroughly explained.
* If something is not being done and you think it should be, ask why.
* Be friendly and show respect to hospital staff. They will probably respond better to you and to the person in your care. Bad feelings between family members and staff may cause the staff to avoid the person.
* Assist with the person's grooming and care.
* Speak up if you notice doctors or nurses examining anyone without first washing their hands.
* Check all bills and ask questions about anything that isn't clear to you.


Reducing Stress

You can do a great deal to help reduce the stress the person with dementia is feeling. One of the most important things you can do is to stay with him as much as possible. You know best how to calm and communicate with him and can help the staff to understand his reactions.

Be sure to tell the hospital staff that your relative has dementia. Because information does not always get passed from shift to shift, you should tell any staff members you haven't seen before about his dementia and about what his normal behavior is like. Try to develop a working relationship with the staff so that your role of advocate (supporter) will be more effective.

As the caregiver to a person with AD, you have to be able to speak for the person with the hospital staff. Do not be afraid to ask for a second opinion. The doctors will understand that you need as much information as you can get when making decisions for someone else.

Let the staff know that you want to be regularly informed about the medical plan and the medications given to your care receiver. A person with Alzheimer's disease will not be able to know if he is getting the correct medication. Set up times to meet with the doctor so that you can get and give feedback on the person's progress. The hospital social worker will be able to help you make these arrangements.

Try to arrange a room in the quietest place on the floor. If he must share a room with another patient, explain to that person and his family that he has dementia and may not be able to follow the regular rules of etiquette. If the roommate has frequent visitors who upset the person in your care, it may be necessary to request a room or roommate change.

If you are having a problem in the hospital that you cannot resolve, you may get additional support from the Patient Representative. The representative will be familiar with hospital procedures and may be able to help you to get what you need or explain why it is not possible.

Throughout the course of the person's hospital stay, pay attention to your own level of stress and fatigue. If you don't get enough help from family and friends you may need to hire a professional aide. This can be done through the hospital.

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Normally, the Library would not include comments posted about an article on another website ... but these seemed particularly important:

ClancyD said 05/30/12:

Boy is this true. My mistake wasn't being there 24 hours a day. Problem is by the time I took my husband to the ER I was already exhausted and needed to get some rest. I was there during the day but not at night. He had a pacemaker put in and I was not told. I was in the ER and a cardiologist came by and talked about observing him to see if he needed one. I couldn't believe they were going to do that, but I didn't speak up. I know better now but I thought my discussion with the other ER doctor which included the advanced directive would take care of it and that I would be consulted if they decided to go ahead with the pacemaker. Wrong! The decision was made to put it in during the night. I was not told and it was a done deal when I got there in the morning. That was six months ago and my husband was already in the later stages of dementia. It has been down hill since then. He has been in the hospital with sepsis. It is now 8 weeks after that episode and he has just gone downhill. He can hardly walk, he doesn't know the difference between night and day, he no longer can do any of the things that he once was able to do such as read or watch TV. He doesn't like the TV to be on. I try taking him out and he is not responsive. About the only thing he likes is to eat a hot dog with mustard, ketsup and pickle relish. That is the only thing that gets a response. The article is important, especially having them explain everything they are doing (that did not happen for me). They explained it to him and he nods. He can still sign his name. Sometimes I fear that because we do have good insurance it is helping foot the bill for those how don't and that is why they keep treating this. I have gotten very cynical. This article has excellent advice, problem is when the caregiver is exhausted from years of taking care of the person and has used up the money reserves, burned out the relatives and friends, then what to do? Thanks for letting me rant.

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janetm said:

My husband just completed a six-day hospital stay. He has dementia so I stayed with him about 12-14 hours/day. I was amazed at how many nurses would ask him to use the call button if he needed anything. FYI- Always ask about the meds. They had two meds on his chart that he was not supposed to have and I caught that error! Also make sure that they know if the patient is incontinent or has any allergies to foods, etc. Assume nothing. Be the informant for your relative.