I get no respect

I am so thankful that I can speak up for myself and fight for my own dignity and respect. Two mornings ago I wanted to eat Breakfast in my room.  I avoid the dining hall like the plague infected chaos that it is. The CNA refused to help me back in bed and forced me to go eat in the dining room. When I got back from therapy, I asked to have help getting back into bed. She did this, not the gentlest but she did help. About 20 minutes later I realized I really had to go to the bathroom. I requested this and she went off. She was in another patient's room and stated screaming "I just put her to bed not 20 minutes ago. She should have gone then. She does nothing but lay around in bed anyway. I am not putting up with this. She is such a pain." Um, no. This is NOT okay with me. I ended up speaking with the nursing director who was as horrified as I was pissed. She took down detailed notes and spoke with the CNA about her behavior. This particular person will no longer provide care for me as I am not comfortable with it. She humiliated me by name in front of other patients and staff. I could hear her down the hall she was so loud.Since then the CNAs have been efficient but very cold and abrupt. I am sure her story was told to them very differently than what happened. Whatever.

I have the Right...The Right...

Today (Tuesday) I hope to meet with a social worker as I have requested. There are several issues in terms of care that need to be addressed. I have the right to go to the bathroom when I need to, not an hour or more later. I have the right to not be ridiculed to my face or behind my back. I have the right to access my doctor when requested, instead of being ignored. I have the right to make my own choices about what I do and when I do it. I have the right to freedom of speech and to be heard. I have the right to know my own body better than anyone. Yet none of these rights are being fully given. The sad thing is that this is an average nursing home/rehab facility (definitely not the worst) and many people do not even have the ability to know or state their rights. I do not think I am asking too much or being unreasonable. I want to have dignity, self determination, access to proper medical care, and respect. I want to be treated as a human, not bed 205 or my diagnosis.

A Rose By Any Other Name...

A rare two posting night. :) I cannot sleep yet because of my headache and this observation really hit home tonight.
It is very easy to view the elderly as being child like. Often they are spoken to or treated as if it is assumed that their cognitive abilities have all but vanished. No one here has Dementia (not on the two wards I use) but the way many people talk to them you would never know. I had to do an assessment for recreation services today, and one of the questions was what important information I wanted them to know. I specifically had her write that I am highly intelligent and detest having people talk down to me or treat me as a child. I just hope they can follow that.
My big revelation this evening is how patients are talked about without them knowing, even in front of other patients. They literally have very inappropriate nick names for several of the residents that I know of. They laugh about these people and find humor in their limitations. As a former preschool special education teacher I would never have talked about my students like this because no matter what the challenges are they were first and foremost children. Here it should be that patients are first and foremost human beings. I know some people can have a difficult personality, or an annoying habit but that is no reason to demean them. Dignity can be a very rare thing around here.
Is this how we want our elderly to be treated? These people are mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, sisters, brothers, friends. They matter to someone. I was raised to respect those older than me, even if just by a little bit. We have lost this manner in so many ways. It breaks my heart to see and hear it. I am so thankful that this is not my home, that I get to go home and go back to a life where I will have dignity, respect, appreciation, love, and belonging. But for so many this is home and they do not get to return to a life of respect.