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For What It’s Worth by Dr. Melfi , Ph.D.

Hi everyone…I’m back from a month hiatus and not one that was fun. I had back surgery, successfully, but I certainly have learned a lot, and I’m going to impart that knowledge to those of you who are going to have surgery, sooner or later. As a Registered Nurse, I have worked for years in some of the best hospitals, but I have been out of the loop for some time now, and trust me, things are not like they used to be. I went into the nursing profession because I wanted to help people at their most vulnerable time, and that included physical and emotional support. is is not going to be a dart throwing contest against nurses, doctors, or hospitals, because I believe they all want to do their best, but unfortunately, due to nancial or other restraints, what you are going to receive is not what you should be receiving. I know your life may have been saved in a hospital, or by a nurse or doctor, and you are eternally grateful, so I am not speaking about that. I’m referring to the fact that due to the nursing shortage, and whatever else is short, the care you are going to receive is not optimal. At least not in any institutions in which I have worked decades ago.

I am going to do these next few articles as an ongoing education as to what to expect, so you can be prepared and help yourself because knowledge is power. First things rst. e pre-op evaluation. at used to be done in a hospital setting, along with pre-admission, but nowadays, your primary care doctor will do the evaluation, which consists of blood work, urine culture, medical history and examination, and chest x-ray. e hospital will call you for the pre-admission questions a few days before surgery. Some surgeries are done in an out-patient setting, but if you are not comfortable with that, you can request an in-patient hospital setting, provided there are extenuating circumstances, because don’t forget, your insurance company always has to be satis ed with how their money is being spent.

As a hospital patient, I did not feel the need to have a family member stay with me. I understood the surgical procedure, and the recovery process. at was a mistake. On the second day I sent an SOS to my daughter to help me. Why? Because the little things, like getting a glass of cold water, or pulling my blanket up, or regulating the thermostat in my room, was not anything I was physically able to accomplish, and the nurses were up to their eyeballs with call lights lit up like Christmas up and down the hallway. So, if I were you, I’d have someone lined up for the rst few days to summon help or give help when needed. A er surgery, you are basically helpless for a day or so, and there is nothing worse than being thirsty or freezing without a helping hand.

en there is the question of what to bring to the hospital. I had to order a back brace ahead of time, and bring it with me to the hospital. What I didn’t know was that I needed a nightgown or shirt that I didn’t have to raise my arms over my head, or that I would need to have someone change my gown, bed linens, help me with bathroom activities and basic hygiene because Dorothy, we’re not in Kansas anymore. (Hope you got the comparison from the Wizard of Oz). In my nursing days, we had a med nurse passing out medications, so we could actually do hands-on patient care, but there isn’t time for bed changes, back rubs, and emotional support. It is strictly, state your needs and move on, which saddened me. I don’t call that nursing, and I don’t believe most other nurses do either. Perhaps that explains the nursing shortage, and perhaps funds should go into more sta ng, because nurses who are stretched thin, cannot give anything more than basic care.

More on this next time, but For What it’s Worth, the only thing you can count on getting when you’re a patient in a hospital setting, is someone else’s germs.