Mom seems over medicated during hip rehab. Any advice?
She broke her femoral neck two weeks ago and was doing amazingly well. Did not need hip replacement just screw. Said she never had pain in the hip but has complained about headaches and some shoulder pain. She is 87. Until a few days ago she was only taking pain meds at night to sleep and was chipper,doing well ini rehab etc. two days ago she complained to the nurse she was sleeping too much. I also noticed she had turned lethargic. Nurse told both of us she had started taking pain meds around the clock. I tried talking to the nurse. This really didn't seem necessary to up the meds". They want her to go home Tuesday and seemed to me they should be weaning her off the meds, not the opposite. Especially since she is not experiencing pain in the hip. The staff seemed clueless and mom resented it. Mom likes Vicodin and would take dad's on occasion. She really got mad at me once for not giving Vicodin to her when I had some left over from dental surgery. Am I the clueless one here? I think mom is just taking it to make the hospital time go faster. It does not seem to be helping on here recovery but actually hindering. Am I being a helicopter daughter or is this STOP.
When an elder is in the hospital, you really need to be there most of each day to meet their needs and make sure they don't fall, and get something to eat. Trays are taken back to the kitchen staff untouched if the elder is weak or a fussy eater.
However, she will change in the hospital both from the fall and being out of her normal environment. Hospitals have a disorienting effect on the elder. If the hospital is overmedicating her to keep her from demanding the care she needs or wants, that could explain the mood change. Don't be surprised if she starts talking about trips she has taken which she imagined as a result of the drugs. I had this happen with my elderly father when a doctor from the hospital not his doctor allowed him to be sedated because he needed help walking with his walker to the bathroom or to use a bedside commode. Hospitals staff resent the elders who need care, they expect them to be able to walk themselves everywhere and not bother them.
However 90+ seniors need care with everything and this results in them overmedicating them. I had aides joking that my father was eating sugar packets on his breakfast tray after being over medicated.
However, before your mother comes home. Get a plan in place. She may have broken something else if she has pain. Perhaps they only checked her hip. Check her situation out fully.
Second, 48 hours isn't enough time to watch her after a fall. I would have her with a home health aide for a month or so to make sure she can live without help. You don't want her to have another fall. However, once they have a fall, they will have another. Having someone there will give her a chance not to break a hip.
She may need to walk with a walker for support and need a PT from medicare to show her how to use it effectively.
Her home or apartment needs to be checked for safety. Throw rugs and other things which could trip her need to be eliminated. Consider getting a bed rail so she has support getting into and out of bed. Medicare does not pay for this item but without it lots of seniors fall when getting into and out of bed.
This fall is a wake up call, mother is aging and things are happening. She is being to have mobility issues. Perhaps it is arthritis or she has light headed moments when she falls but something is happening. Some medicines can make the elder light headed. There is a reason the elder falls.
Good luck. You are correct that hospitals are not good places for the elderly and especially the fragile elderly.
Even after the home health aide leaves, get a medical alert button on her.
If there is an addiction issue or she has problems weaning off it once she is home, I think medicare has a home service for the first few weeks a patient is home. Maybe have a behavioral nurse go to the house and work with her to wean her off if she seems to have withdrawal problems once home.
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