To think he should be released from hospital

[buddhalove]

www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/obese-man-33-weighing-55-13370434

Just seen this in the news (sorry it's the Mirror not the most reliable I know)
But should he really be kept in the hospital when he has no medical reason to be there anymore?
Not only that he has assaulted 4 nursing staff on duty and was unable to attend court because of transport issues. I think he was convicted anyway in his absence.

What other options would there be if he has nowhere to go?
Surely keeping him in hospital in '4 beds' that others may desperately need is really not ideal. I honestly don't think his weight should come into the article though I don't see how it matters, it's not his weight he is there for. He isn't currently ill or in need of medical attention. That should have been the main focus.
Why can he not be discharged and given homeless accommodation if he genuinely has nowhere to go?

He’s going to need carers and equipment to move him so homeless accommodation wouldn’t be suitable.
I feel sorry for the staff who have to treat him though when he’s repeatedly assaulting them!

The assaults on staff are, according to the article, not related to his current situation in the hospital. Previous convictions from a care home.

He is ill, as evidenced by his massive morbid obesity, and disabled in that he can't move without assistance. Where's he supposed to go? I do agree that there must be a better place for him but they can't just chuck him out of the front doors to lie in a blob on the floor.

He was evidently in care accommodation previously, and his mum claims that new accommodation is being arranged, I'm not sure what else anyone can do. Obviously he has serious problems and needs a lot of help. If they could discharge him, they would. He needs significant care including bariatric beds and transportation, and a home able to accommodate him, and that can't be summoned on a whim.

I thought patients were entitled to confidentiality. This man clearly has significant and complex difficulties. He was in a care home prior to being hospitalised and unless you know his medical history and don't see how you can say he should be discharged.

Reading that article it would seem that they have served him with his discharge notice so are not actually treating him for anything so he is not ill, so he should not be in a hospital.

Good point Twisted, they should have confidentiality shouldn't they. I didn't think of that. Surely he must have given consent to reporters maybe?

I was going purely on the facts presented by the article. That he no longer has a medical need to be in the hospital he is currently in. So no, he shouldn't be there.

Facts? I mean, the Mirror isn't the Dail Mail but it's not a bastion of investigative journalism. Could it possibly be a clickbaity sort of a story, specifically omitting key facts in order to drum up exactly this sort of discussion?

Spoon you are totally correct. I hate clickbaits ! I did state in OP it was the Mirror which isn't reliable.
If everything written in the article was in fact 'facts' then it would be wrong to keep him in hospital when he has no medical need currently to be there.

Hospitals can evict patients here.

I think it’s a terrible waste of money and resources. If anyone is fit leave hospital, regardless of their age, shape or size, then they and their relatives should co-operate and do their utmost to get it sorted in a timely fashion. Of course it would have helped hugely had the social care budget not been so severely cut.

Why so interested in this story? I thought it was well known that hospitals are full of 'bed blockers' with high care needs, mostly elderly, who can't be discharged because of the steaming hot mess that is social care.

Sounds like the Multi Disciplinary Team failed him here. If he is fit for discharge plans should of been in place ready. He will need Bariatric equipment, all comes down to Adult Social Services.

@TwistedStitch Well said

There are several patients on my ward who are medically fit for discharge (known colloquially as ‘bed blockers’) but we can’t discharge them because there is nowhere for them to go, for whatever reason.

It’s not that simple and not your business to comment when you haven’t the first idea what this man’s issues are and how difficult it can be to place people when there are no social or nursing care options for them. We can’t simply discharge people into the ether as that would be neglecting our duty of care.

I think it's anyone's business to comment when it's printed in the media to be honest.

It shouldn't be printed in the media though. It's just inviting people to pile on to somebody who is clearly extremely troubled and unwell and hold them personally responsible for the problems within the NHS.

It’s bloody outrageous ! He shouldn’t be occupying 1 hospital bed let alone 4 ffs!
This is a prime example of the carnage that has ensued since the closure of psychiatric hospitals and services

Nightwatch I’ve been a member of a MDT in similar cases to this. It’s not a case of the MDT ‘failing’ someone.
You can have all the plans in place you like, but if there simply isn’t appropriate accommodation that meets someone’s complex needs, what do you suggest?
Get the MDT to roll up their sleeves and build somewhere?
Out of interest, do you work in a hospital discharging complex patients?

Someone asked about patient confidentiality... sadly people are so desperate for their own moment of fame they actually tell negative stories about themselves to the press.
30 years ago I looked after a woman who spoke to the Sunday sport about being evicted from her home and how the hospital staff couldn't care for her due to her weight.
Head line was due to her eviction and the home the council in those days (bet she would not be so lucky now) placed her and her family in meant she could not get into the loo.

Head line was something like "ten ton Mum can't go to Lav"
It was a bloody nightmare the phone on the ward went constantly and we could not defend the hospital but the new items were negative but she was happy she was famous 🍾

Ps we could care for her but she did not like we actually had a hoist for her!