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What was suspicious was their refusal to upload the MRI results so that they could be read in New York. My father-in-law wound hand-carrying a CD with the results back to New York so that his wife missed their scheduled flight last Friday. I suspect that was the objective of their non-cooperation.
She didn't really have a doctor there. The hospital "takes care" of that though not in a way that you'd like. But who "lost money" on the deal?
Probably ER sent it to a consulting neurologist and a radiologist. When the frequent falls started for my mom, they did all the imaging tests to see if there were neurological causes, such as stroke, alzheimer's, brain tumor, etc.
You could've just taken her to an MRI facility local to the rehab to get a second opinion.
Can't other doctors' opinions be sought under HIPAA?
Quote:
Originally Posted by lchoro
Probably ER sent it to a consulting neurologist and a radiologist. When the frequent falls started for my mom, they did all the imaging tests to see if there were neurological causes, such as stroke, alzheimer's, brain tumor, etc.
You could've just taken her to an MRI facility local to the rehab to get a second opinion.
Don't you need a prescription for that? And why not just have someone else read the scans?
I think you would go to a hospital radiology dept or a standalone facility to ask for a second opinion service.
I've walked into an ER and gotten a second opinion when I didn't trust the radiologist referred by my mom's internist. The ER took the scans but still required new scans. The original hip replacement recommendation was overriden by the hospital's consulting orthopedic surgeon. What made me distrust the first radiologist was that he wanted to fasttrack my mom to hip surgery that afternoon and would only send her to a specific surgeon at a hospital farther away (not unlike your suspicion). I took her to a different hospital ER closest to my home.
They were right, extreme pressure changes could be very risky for your mom right now. The general rule is 2 weeks, but for an elderly person or someone who may have additional complications or risk factors for DVT or another stroke, I can see the doctor recommending a longer waiting period.
I work in nursing home rehab. People leave all the time, families don't like this or that, etc..in 18 years I have never worked in one who would try to manipulate you into staying, let alone lie to get you to stay. That's pretty outlandish to me, and I do not think that's what they were doing at all. We try to resolve what they are unhappy about, but if they want to go, we arrange a transfer to a different facility if that's what they want. If the family wants the person to go home, it depends...if it's against medical advice, they are not allowed to arrange transportation home nor to help you discharge her AMA.
It's the doctor who decides if she is medically stable to fly, and he couldn't care less if your loved one stays or goes, he has no incentive to lie.
I also broke my father out of a rehab/snf center. He was private pay, and at approx $11k a month, you can bet they did have an incentive to keep him there as long as possible.
We informed them of our need to move him to another state, and were met with "he's in no condition to sit up for a drive, it will take months in order for him to be physically ready". Never mind the fact that he'd been there for 6 months, and it was their fault he really didn't sit up (he was bed bound). They never suggested ambulance transport (which would have been very expensive, but cheaper than $11K x multiple additional months).
After going about things nicely for days with multiple social workers/administrators, I asked for the manager of the facility. I then politely informed them they'd received their last check, and if they chose not to release dad, that going forward he would be a charity case. Amazingly, he was deemed ready for release in 72 hours (the end of the month).
Strange how he went from not being medically stable enough to make a 4 hour drive and needing months of conditioning to get ready for such an arduous trip, to being ready to go in 72 hours. Very coincidental that it coincided with the last day they were being paid for his care.
I realize that my story is just an anecdote, but it is also an actual experience where money 100% influenced a facilities' decision to keep a person (or not). So, yes, I personally believe that establishments may play with the facts and that they are more motivated to do so when a higher paying patient is involved.
What was suspicious was their refusal to upload the MRI results so that they could be read in New York. My father-in-law wound hand-carrying a CD with the results back to New York so that his wife missed their scheduled flight last Friday. I suspect that was the objective of their non-cooperation.
Again, if you were taking her out AMA (Against Medical Advise) they are not allowed to help you with any aspect of her discharge. There could have been a HIPAA concern as well with uploading the CD..normally it's the MRI facility that would forward results to other doctors, not the nursing home.
Strange how he went from not being medically stable enough to make a 4 hour drive and needing months of conditioning to get ready for such an arduous trip, to being ready to go in 72 hours. Very coincidental that it coincided with the last day they were being paid for his care.
I realize that my story is just an anecdote, but it is also an actual experience where money 100% influenced a facilities' decision to keep a person (or not). So, yes, I personally believe that establishments may play with the facts and that they are more motivated to do so when a higher paying patient is involved.
Your story sounds strangely familiar. And there is a novelist by the name of Carl Hiaasen who writes about Florida's crooked medical, political and legal systems.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ocnjgirl
Again, if you were taking her out AMA (Against Medical Advise) they are not allowed to help you with any aspect of her discharge. There could have been a HIPAA concern as well with uploading the CD..normally it's the MRI facility that would forward results to other doctors, not the nursing home.
We suspect that the MRI and the rehab facility work rather well together. One hand washes the other.
They were right, extreme pressure changes could be very risky for your mom right now. The general rule is 2 weeks, but for an elderly person or someone who may have additional complications or risk factors for DVT or another stroke, I can see the doctor recommending a longer waiting period.
It turns out that she had a "subacute" stroke about five days before her fall. Her fall was precipitated by dehydration. Thus we were right to "smell a rat" here since the MRI could easily have seen that the stroke would not have prevented her from flying.
When the benefits run out, see how fast they try to get you to make "other arrangements" for the patient, whether they are in good shape to be moved or not.
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