Welcome to the Lightkeepers podcast. I'm Clayton
Vandiver, your lightkeeper with the show dedicated
to everyone who wants to get the most quality
out of life that they can. We don't talk about
the end of life here. We focus mainly on the
quality of those days getting there. My co -host,
as always, Charlene, our licensed clinical social
worker certified in the state of Florida, and
we invite you all to join us in this conversation
this week. about the typical hospital stay from
start to finish on this episode of the Lightkeepers
podcast. Hey, before we start, I'd like to invite
you to please leave your questions or comments
below and please join the conversation. Questions
this week will be answered during our next show
that appears online every Wednesday evening at
7 p .m. Eastern. Well, when do family members
typically get information from some of these
players in the hospital, some of these behind
-the -scenes folks that you may never even meet?
Will family members get information from them?
Hopefully. So there again, this depends on how
the hospital admission starts. If you bring yourself
to the hospital or if you're alert when you come
into the hospital, the first thing that they're
going to ask you once they get past your medical
history and current situation is, who can we
call? And that's not just because they want...
you to have someone there with you, but that's
also because that's someone who can make decisions
for you if something happens and you're not able
to make them for yourself. That's a very good
point. And I've heard you tell me on many occasions
that it is best to have a family member or some
caregiver, someone that you trust with you in
the hospital at all times. Absolutely. Medical
professionals are wonderful people, speaking
as a medical professional, but we're also human.
And mistakes can happen, especially if you have
someone with an allergy. You know, doctors, not
to play into the stereotypes here, but doctors
don't always read charts, they don't always have
time to, especially if it's someone needing urgent
care, they're gonna come in and they're gonna
triage the situation, which means they're gonna
treat it as it presents. And if you have someone
with an allergy, if you have someone with a pre
-existing situation that the medical team needs
to be aware of, you're most likely going to be
better off if you have someone with you. The
medical setting is no different than any other
setting where you have someone who is vulnerable
and that is that it's always best to have someone
there to advocate for you just in case. Well
that sort of plays into a few weeks ago we were
talking about DNR, do not resuscitate, and how
sometimes when in the heat of the moment or if
you're non -responsive there's no one there to
tell them that you have one, they may not know.
and you may get resuscitated. Absolutely. The
medical professional's first and foremost thought
is going to be to serve and preserve. Okay, so
they're going to treat and they're going to do
everything they can to keep you to keep someone
alive now if that someone is Maybe not wanting
that care. Maybe they don't want to be kept alive
Maybe they're you know coming to the end of a
long illness and they don't want that to be prolonged
then there's no one there to tell that medical
professional. If they don't have time to read
the chart, they're not gonna know that there
may be documents already in place talking about
the level of care that you want. Absolutely.
Well, you know, I've noticed that time seems
to stand still when you're in a hospital, in
my experience. Whether you're a visitor or a
patient, have you had that happen? Why does that
happen? So, have you ever seen a clock In an
emergency room? Come to think of it, I haven't.
No. A lot of emergency rooms don't have clocks.
And there's multiple reasons for that. Sometimes
it's just an oversight. You know, the hospital
didn't think to put one there. Maybe they do
have one and you just can't see it from where
you are in the room. But. time does seem to stand
still in a hospital and a lot of the times that's
because when someone is in the hospital it's
a very stressful situation and time passes differently
when you're not having fun and a moment can seem
to last a lifetime. That is true. Now as a counselor,
what can be done to sort of pass the time or
to help that situation? So if you are a family
member that is there with someone, you can pass
that time by being that moral support to them.
Holding a hand. Talking to them. And if you have
someone who is very sick, Talk to them about
what they're experiencing because if something
happens and they lose that ability to speak Your
information is going to be very valuable to the
medical team and helping to to treat that person
They're able to communicate to you along the
way Save the information jot that down take a
notepad and a pen with you And keep those notes
for the doctors. And it's always a good idea,
no matter how old you are, how healthy or not
healthy you are, it's always a good idea to have
either saved in a folder that you can grab quickly
and easily, or maybe even saved on your electronic
device, be it a tablet or a phone. current list
of medications, current contact information for
all of the medical professionals that you're
seeing, especially any specialist, because what
that's going to do is that's going to make the
hospital's job a lot easier in pulling in all
the information they need to be able to treat
the situation. Absolutely. Well, when you're
discharged from the hospital, what happens at
that point? Or is that something that, since
we're running a little short of time, we ought
to save for the next show? That is something
that we could cover over several different shows
because discharges are different depending on
how someone's discharging, what care they need.
Right, right. Well, thank you for that great
information about the hospital experience. For
a lot of folks who have never been to one, or
who have been to one in different situations
or just been the family member of someone, that's
important. That gives us some perspective to
understand what to expect and how to handle ourselves
once we're there. Absolutely. The most important
thing is to remember that despite what they may
believe, doctors are not gods and the family
and the patient does have the right to know what's
going on. at all times. Absolutely. Absolutely.
And to have an advocate there speaking on your
behalf. Absolutely. Well, of course, this is
all a highly personal choice and no conversation
we have on the Light Keepers podcast. Should
ever take the place of your own medical care
team or other medical advisor, professional advisor
who should always be consulted by you on your
own specific situational needs. It's always good
to be willing to talk about quality of life because
every single one of us will face some of these
issues someday, either not prepared at all. or
very well prepared indeed from joining us right
here on the Light Keepers podcast each and every
Wednesday at 7 p .m. Eastern. The Light Keepers
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about life planning, available guidance and counseling
that helps individuals and their family navigate
options that improve the quality of their remaining
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and options to meet your planning needs that
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Clayton Vandiver, your light keeper. We'll see
you next time.