Advocation for our health is something we must truly stress and take seriously. We must use our voice when situations are less than expected especially when it comes to our health care. Nobody will speak for us. Maybe a family member or a spouse but our voice is the only one the truly matters. It is our bodies than endure illness, pain, disease and more. Speaking up for yourself when you are pretty much on your knees seems difficult but nevertheless it must be done.
Friday December 13th around Noon I had a normal lunch I often get nearby my office. A Turkey Club Wrap. Around 4:00 PM I started to feel off and strange but didn’t think anything of it. I figured I was just tired. By 7:00 PM I was locked down on the sofa sick to my stomach and unable to move with nausea.
By 10:00 PM Episode # 1 of vomiting with two exits began; if you know what I mean. If you’ve ever had aggressive food poisoning basically whichever way your body can find an exit it’s going to use that route. After the 3rd episode around 11:00 PM my husband was getting me dressed, putting my socks on my tiny feet and bundling me up with a coat. Fully equipped with one of his construction buckets for the car; just in case and off to the Hospital we went. We swiftly pulled into Kaiser’s Hospital and Emergency Room off Sand Canyon in Irvine, CA. Pulling into the front parking spot Episode # 4 was underway. My amazing husband slowly put me into a wheelchair and wheeled me in the emergency room with my head in the bucket. They took my vitals right away as I was vomiting while they did this and then the nurse proceeded to tell us that the wait was over 2 hours long and there was no doctor available. My husband explained to them “my wife has secondary progressive multiple sclerosis and has been vomiting with diarrhea over 4 times in the past hour already. She needs fluids asap.”. They told him “I’m sorry sir but there are other patients here that were here first.”
He rolled me into the waiting room where it was filled with other patients. Some laughing, others reading, one of which who was knitting a blanket. All the while I was still vomiting and doubled over in stomach pains. My husband made it a point to go ask “How much longer” about every 10 mins. About 30 mins in we were called into a back room for blood work. Keep in mind I am still battling my phobia with needles and I had been violently vomiting. Again, my husband rolls me into another room with a hospital bed. I laid down while she took 7 vials of blood all while having my husband talk me through this, so I don’t pass out on top of everything else happening. He told me about what “Chico” our teacup yorkie had done earlier that day. What mischief he got into and how cute he looks in his Christmas sweater. On the 6th vial of blood the only thing I could do to keep from fainting was sing to myself. I’m sure the nurse thought I was insane but singing to myself got me through the 7thvial without passing out. The nurse showed little compassion. My husband demanded that they allow me to remain laying down there instead of going back into the waiting room sitting up in a wheelchair. Thankfully they agreed.
About 30 minutes after she left again Episode # 5 was underway and from both ends. Bless my husband for packing extra underpants in his pocket for me just in case. As I was loudly and violently sick my husband ran to grab a nurse after I defecated on myself. A nurse said the bathroom is around the corner. I could not even get up to get to the bathroom. I was never offered a gurney or even a bed pan. We were left to fend for ourselves in this mess. I kept thinking to myself if I was alone, I would literally be sitting in my own feces with no help. No nurse ever came to check on me, offer assistance or show any compassion. It was a nightmare. I was howling in pain crying from vomiting so hard and from making a mess of myself and the only person who cared was my husband. He continued to hunt down nurses asking how much longer and that I was continuing to mess myself and needed a doctor right away. I felt myself becoming weaker and weaker unable to even stand at this point. Again, the nurses continued to give my husband attitude and said that there were other patients and the wait will be long. With the help of my husband I was able to get myself cleaned up and lost an expensive pair of Victoria Secret’s High waisted woman’s briefs. Kaiser you owe me a pair!
Finally, 2 hours in I was brought to a room and another nurse came in telling me to put on the nightgown down to the underwear. I was already freezing from my body being in shock and asked him when the doctor will see me? He replied that he did not know, and it would be a while yet. I told him I refused to sit here freezing in my underwear until then and basically ignored his request to change into a hospital gown. My husband went on to explain I have SPMS and that I was dangerously dehydrated and needed fluids asap due to the 5 times I had vomited with diarrhea in less than 2 hours’ time. The nurse gave both of us an attitude and told us “I’m not giving her anything until she’s assigned a Doctor and I don’t know when that will be.” My husband needless to say was furious. Shortly after this Episode #6 took place in the hospital room. Nobody came to check on us. Not one nurse showed concern. I was beside myself in agony crying in pain. We called a nurse to offer anything to assist even a cold wash cloth for my head. The nurse refused and told us to wait.
Our male nurse finally agreed to offer me fluids as I was turning grey and could barely keep my eyes open from being so weak. He put an IV in my right arm and said he would be back with the fluids. After another 20 minutes passed, he was still not back so naturally my husband asked what was going on. The nurse claimed he had no idea what my husband was talking about. I cried out to him “Why did you put the IV into my arm if you were not going to connect it to anything?! You told me you could start me on fluids only until the Dr came!” He denied this and said he never said that and that he is not allowed to administer anything to me and if we continued to fuss, we would wait longer.
Another 30 minutes passed and again I knew I needed to get to a restroom as Episode # 7 was coming and we were approaching the 3rdhour. My husband told the nurse we were going to the restroom as another episode was coming. He quickly assisted me almost carrying me to the restroom and coached me through Episode # 7 which last about 10 minutes. My husband deserves a metal for acting as my nurse. He saw things I never wished him to see. But there he was by my side from beginning to end. After Episode # 7 finished he carried me back to the hospital room where the nurse told him “Well you guys just missed the Dr and he’s moved on to another patient now.” My husband went into rage saying “My wife was defecating on herself again while vomiting. Would you rather her have done that on the floor instead? Nobody offered us even a bedpan or gurney and now we have to wait longer because you failed to tell him we were in the restroom tending to her?” The male nurse continued to make excuses saying, “if you want to be seen you need to be present.” My husband asked for his name and he flipped over his name tag so his name was not visible and walked away. My husband didn’t know at the time but I had already mentally recorded his name in my mind from earlier. This is where my husband went 50 shades of east coast (keep in mind he’s from California) yet at this point you would have sworn he was straight out of the Bronx. By this point another nurse came over telling my husband to calm down. We were in the right here and Kaiser was failing miserably. This was patient neglect at it’s finest. Finally, after both my husbands voice was well above the appropriate level and my whaling in agony was anything but discreet the Dr came rushing in to introduce himself. My husband explained how poorly we had been treated and I was started on Zofran via IV drip. It took over 3 hours to get medical attention and 3 days later I am paying for it on an unimaginable level. My body is weaker than it has ever been. My MS is in major flare up and we knew this would happen. Nobody took us seriously even though they witnessed with their own eyes violent vomiting and defecation in a waiting room while other ER patients Facebooked, took selfies and knitted a blanket. Nobody cared. Nobody showed compassion. Nobody came to check on us. We were left alone and unfortunately this was our only location option in Orange County for a Kaiser Hospital Facility. We will be reporting this to the Health Board as well as Kaiser. We are thrilled to be leaving this Medical Group Jan 1st and will be moving over to Anthem Blue Cross where we will have options as to where we can go.
I keep thinking to myself. What if I was elderly and alone? Those nurses would have left me to sit in my own feces for hours. Nobody checking on me. Nobody offering assistant. Nobody advocating for me. It breaks my heart to know that this happens in our health care system. We must speak up for our own health. Even if we are viewed as crazy and loud when we are in dire situations who will listen? Who will care? I know that I am just another patient with a horror story of I’m sure thousands. If it were not for my amazing husband I would have been neglected and alone. This should never happen in health care. Speak up for your body! Don’t wait and remain quiet especially in an emergency. If it wasn’t an emergency, you wouldn’t have gone to the Emergency Room. A similar thing happened to my Mother about a year ago with food poisoning where we took her to Mission Hospital. She was administered medication within 30 minutes of arriving. Not 3 hours later after 7 violent episodes. This should never happen. Stand up and use your voice. If you do not use your voice you will never be heard. Advocate for your health. You have one body and one body only. But together we have more than one voice.
Advocation for our health is something we must truly stress and take seriously. We must use our voice when situations are less than expected especially when it comes to our health care. Nobody will speak for us. Maybe a family member or a spouse but our voice is the only one the truly matters. It is our bodies than endure illness, pain, disease and more. Speaking up for yourself when you are pretty much on your knees seems difficult but nevertheless it must be done.
Friday December 13th around Noon I had a normal lunch I often get nearby my office. A Turkey Club Wrap. Around 4:00 PM I started to feel off and strange but didn’t think anything of it. I figured I was just tired. By 7:00 PM I was locked down on the sofa sick to my stomach and unable to move with nausea.
By 10:00 PM Episode # 1 of vomiting with two exits began; if you know what I mean. If you’ve ever had aggressive food poisoning basically whichever way your body can find an exit it’s going to use that route. After the 3rd episode around 11:00 PM my husband was getting me dressed, putting my socks on my tiny feet and bundling me up with a coat. Fully equipped with one of his construction buckets for the car; just in case and off to the Hospital we went. We swiftly pulled into Kaiser’s Hospital and Emergency Room off Sand Canyon in Irvine, CA. Pulling into the front parking spot Episode # 4 was underway. My amazing husband slowly put me into a wheelchair and wheeled me in the emergency room with my head in the bucket. They took my vitals right away as I was vomiting while they did this and then the nurse proceeded to tell us that the wait was over 2 hours long and there was no doctor available. My husband explained to them “my wife has secondary progressive multiple sclerosis and has been vomiting with diarrhea over 4 times in the past hour already. She needs fluids asap.”. They told him “I’m sorry sir but there are other patients here that were here first.”
He rolled me into the waiting room where it was filled with other patients. Some laughing, others reading, one of which who was knitting a blanket. All the while I was still vomiting and doubled over in stomach pains. My husband made it a point to go ask “How much longer” about every 10 mins. About 30 mins in we were called into a back room for blood work. Keep in mind I am still battling my phobia with needles and I had been violently vomiting. Again, my husband rolls me into another room with a hospital bed. I laid down while she took 7 vials of blood all while having my husband talk me through this, so I don’t pass out on top of everything else happening. He told me about what “Chico” our teacup yorkie had done earlier that day. What mischief he got into and how cute he looks in his Christmas sweater. On the 6th vial of blood the only thing I could do to keep from fainting was sing to myself. I’m sure the nurse thought I was insane but singing to myself got me through the 7thvial without passing out. The nurse showed little compassion. My husband demanded that they allow me to remain laying down there instead of going back into the waiting room sitting up in a wheelchair. Thankfully they agreed.
About 30 minutes after she left again Episode # 5 was underway and from both ends. Bless my husband for packing extra underpants in his pocket for me just in case. As I was loudly and violently sick my husband ran to grab a nurse after I defecated on myself. A nurse said the bathroom is around the corner. I could not even get up to get to the bathroom. I was never offered a gurney or even a bed pan. We were left to fend for ourselves in this mess. I kept thinking to myself if I was alone, I would literally be sitting in my own feces with no help. No nurse ever came to check on me, offer assistance or show any compassion. It was a nightmare. I was howling in pain crying from vomiting so hard and from making a mess of myself and the only person who cared was my husband. He continued to hunt down nurses asking how much longer and that I was continuing to mess myself and needed a doctor right away. I felt myself becoming weaker and weaker unable to even stand at this point. Again, the nurses continued to give my husband attitude and said that there were other patients and the wait will be long. With the help of my husband I was able to get myself cleaned up and lost an expensive pair of Victoria Secret’s High waisted woman’s briefs. Kaiser you owe me a pair!
Finally, 2 hours in I was brought to a room and another nurse came in telling me to put on the nightgown down to the underwear. I was already freezing from my body being in shock and asked him when the doctor will see me? He replied that he did not know, and it would be a while yet. I told him I refused to sit here freezing in my underwear until then and basically ignored his request to change into a hospital gown. My husband went on to explain I have SPMS and that I was dangerously dehydrated and needed fluids asap due to the 5 times I had vomited with diarrhea in less than 2 hours’ time. The nurse gave both of us an attitude and told us “I’m not giving her anything until she’s assigned a Doctor and I don’t know when that will be.” My husband needless to say was furious. Shortly after this Episode #6 took place in the hospital room. Nobody came to check on us. Not one nurse showed concern. I was beside myself in agony crying in pain. We called a nurse to offer anything to assist even a cold wash cloth for my head. The nurse refused and told us to wait.
Our male nurse finally agreed to offer me fluids as I was turning grey and could barely keep my eyes open from being so weak. He put an IV in my right arm and said he would be back with the fluids. After another 20 minutes passed, he was still not back so naturally my husband asked what was going on. The nurse claimed he had no idea what my husband was talking about. I cried out to him “Why did you put the IV into my arm if you were not going to connect it to anything?! You told me you could start me on fluids only until the Dr came!” He denied this and said he never said that and that he is not allowed to administer anything to me and if we continued to fuss, we would wait longer.
Another 30 minutes passed and again I knew I needed to get to a restroom as Episode # 7 was coming and we were approaching the 3rdhour. My husband told the nurse we were going to the restroom as another episode was coming. He quickly assisted me almost carrying me to the restroom and coached me through Episode # 7 which last about 10 minutes. My husband deserves a metal for acting as my nurse. He saw things I never wished him to see. But there he was by my side from beginning to end. After Episode # 7 finished he carried me back to the hospital room where the nurse told him “Well you guys just missed the Dr and he’s moved on to another patient now.” My husband went into rage saying “My wife was defecating on herself again while vomiting. Would you rather her have done that on the floor instead? Nobody offered us even a bedpan or gurney and now we have to wait longer because you failed to tell him we were in the restroom tending to her?” The male nurse continued to make excuses saying, “if you want to be seen you need to be present.” My husband asked for his name and he flipped over his name tag so his name was not visible and walked away. My husband didn’t know at the time but I had already mentally recorded his name in my mind from earlier. This is where my husband went 50 shades of east coast (keep in mind he’s from California) yet at this point you would have sworn he was straight out of the Bronx. By this point another nurse came over telling my husband to calm down. We were in the right here and Kaiser was failing miserably. This was patient neglect at it’s finest. Finally, after both my husbands voice was well above the appropriate level and my whaling in agony was anything but discreet the Dr came rushing in to introduce himself. My husband explained how poorly we had been treated and I was started on Zofran via IV drip. It took over 3 hours to get medical attention and 3 days later I am paying for it on an unimaginable level. My body is weaker than it has ever been. My MS is in major flare up and we knew this would happen. Nobody took us seriously even though they witnessed with their own eyes violent vomiting and defecation in a waiting room while other ER patients Facebooked, took selfies and knitted a blanket. Nobody cared. Nobody showed compassion. Nobody came to check on us. We were left alone and unfortunately this was our only location option in Orange County for a Kaiser Hospital Facility. We will be reporting this to the Health Board as well as Kaiser. We are thrilled to be leaving this Medical Group Jan 1st and will be moving over to Anthem Blue Cross where we will have options as to where we can go.
I keep thinking to myself. What if I was elderly and alone? Those nurses would have left me to sit in my own feces for hours. Nobody checking on me. Nobody offering assistant. Nobody advocating for me. It breaks my heart to know that this happens in our health care system. We must speak up for our own health. Even if we are viewed as crazy and loud when we are in dire situations who will listen? Who will care? I know that I am just another patient with a horror story of I’m sure thousands. If it were not for my amazing husband I would have been neglected and alone. This should never happen in health care. Speak up for your body! Don’t wait and remain quiet especially in an emergency. If it wasn’t an emergency, you wouldn’t have gone to the Emergency Room. A similar thing happened to my Mother about a year ago with food poisoning where we took her to Mission Hospital. She was administered medication within 30 minutes of arriving. Not 3 hours later after 7 violent episodes. This should never happen. Stand up and use your voice. If you do not use your voice you will never be heard. Advocate for your health. You have one body and one body only. But together we have more than one voice.