Any doctors or nurses to answer this for me ?

[Queenie6655]

Hello all

Please help if you can

So my dad 89 had a bad fall last Wednesday
Ambulance came and I said I think he has broken his hip
M went to see him a few times and asked for updates everyone busy
Today they read his scan taken last Wednesday which shows he has a badly broken hip??!!!!

Now my aibu is to say something?
Or stay silent as staff are just trying their very best with limited resources???

Go to Pals that is terrible.

Why such a delay??

I have to say this hospital has been outstanding in so so many ways over the last year

Just so surprised

My family think it must be the norm??!!!!

It's terrible and critical that we don't accept this standard of care otherwise it risks becoming the norm.

True

So true

Complain to pals ??
But Also point out all the good things too??

What!? His hip should have been repaired or replaced the same day (or if late, the next morning). Definitely contact PALS. He must have been in agony. Poor man

Omg contact pals first thing in the morning take this as far as you can. Speak to a solicitor that specialises in this negligence. This is absolutely unacceptable.

I’d ask them to explain themselves/what happened and if the response isn’t satisfactory and clear negligence then make an official complaint.

Is your dad able to advocate for himself and if so what are his thoughts on the situation?

This is absolutely terrible
I really think that healthcare in this country is over. It’s so understaffed that there is no service in a growing number of areas.
Just horrific.

He has dementia

I said to them over and over I think he has a broken hip wtaf

But what response could they possibly give that would be satisfactory?

What on earth took so long

The nurse who rang to tell us didn't sound very bothered at all

My god

That’s absolutely insane, definitely complain to PALS. Has he now had surgery?

Its not the norm. You should complain to PALS, if only with the intention of them investigating why it happened and ideally making sure it doesn't happen again.

That’s disgraceful.

I work with older people and for any fall with subsequent loss of mobility or suspected hip impact, an x ray is very normal and should be expedited.

Early surgery is important to optimize recovery. Did they not question why your dad couldn’t walk? I’m wondering what he was being treated for?

I would definitely make a complaint. It’s not good enough.

Did it take them that long to scan him ? Did they xray him initially ? What reasons have they offered? Appalling it has taken this long. Poor man. Insist on answers then complain, IN WRITING.

Definitely complain. That's just appalling.

If he had an X ray on the day, sometimes fractures (breaks) are missed. A radiologist (doctor who specialises in imaging and reading X rays/MRIs/CTs/Ultrasounds etc) will go through all the X rays taken in the hospital and do a report on them. A subtle fracture which is difficult to see may be missed by the (not specialists in imaging) doctors actively caring for your father, but the radiologist are the back up. The timeline fits for the radiologists seeing the images today and reporting it, and now action happening.
X rays aren't reviewed the same day, they normally take a week or so to be formally reported (depending on the hospital), though the requesting Dr would have been expected to check it when it was done. Some breaks are subtle and hard to see on X ray, some you can't miss.
If your dad had an MRI/CT then those also need reporting and requesting doctors often can't interpret them at all unless something is glaringly obvious.
I'd ask for an explanation, but I wouldn't rush to complain until you know what happened.

Thanks so much guys

I think it took them 24 hours to x ray him

Then I heard today his operation will be on Wednesday??!!

Madness isn't it

Ah ok
Mare this hospital has so many good points

I'm so surprised by all of this

Thank you for clarifying this

What's the recovery timeframe like for a bad hip break??

In a patient with dementia its likely recovery will be prolonged and difficult I'm afraid. I would ask to speak to your father's consultant ASAP. Agree with the explanation as to why this has come to light today. That wouldn't worry me tbh. But you need an honest conversation about prognosis ASAP.

So it could be inpatient stay??

Or send him to nursing home after operation?

I wanted to care for him at my home

That's terrible OP, and yes I think you should complain. I'm not in the UK but we are constantly hearing how our health system is under huge pressure and struggling, but a 96 years old friend broke her hip two weeks ago and was set to be operated on the following day. Unfortunately it didn't happen as she had covid and died, but they had transferred her to another hospital to do the surgery. Your poor Dad, he must be in such pain.

So sorry to hear this

How sad

My dad will deteriorate with this

I just want him home and safe with us

Nurse here. I would get onto PALS so that they can get on to the team looking after your Dad and have them contact you and give a full explanation of what’s been happening so far. PALS isn’t just for complaints!

also…depending on the type of fracture, and other health issues a patient may have, surgery might be delayed until a patient is more stable. I haven’t worked in orthopaedics for a long time but did have a patient this year on my ward who had broken a hip. The patient had other significant health issues (hence being on my ward rather than an ortho ward) which meant the orthopaedic team and anaesthetists wanted to stabilise patient first BEFORE surgery could safely happen (even then it was risky). The teams explored different types of surgery as well to see what would be the safest and most appropriate for the patient.

when you do speak to consultant/team looking after your Dad, don’t be afraid to ask any questions or get them to explain anything you don’t understand. I hope your dad has a very speedy recovery!! Xx