Treating the Comatose Patient in a Wellness Driven Workplace

How much does a comatose patient respond to human interaction? For patients who cannot communicate for whatever reason, do we really know how much they see, hear, feel, perceive?

In your hospital or nursing home there are so many patients who are unable to let us know their needs, but they have needs,nonetheless.

If your hospital or nursing home is driven by wellness, this population should be the most fortunate recipients of your care. Even though they are not able to respond to interactions, they know when they are receiving warmth and comfort.

The brain knows for that moment whether or not the patient has memory of it or reacts. The brain knows.

Do you work on a wing where many of the patients are long forgotten by their families and friends? It's a sad predicament. Does your wellness driven workforce see this as a depressing part of their jobs or an opportunity to deliver wellness valued health care to strangers who may remain strangers due to their cognitive impairment? They don't have to be strangers.

For patients who cannot respond, can't complain, or say thank you, are they treated differently? Do they receive the same quality care by every member of your health care team?

For some, the definition of wellness is taking care of health in a preventive manner. Most of the public believes wellness is eating properly and squeezing an exercise program into the day. It's a chore that you need to fake a smile with while you are doing it.

To others wellness is understanding the value of the mind and body in sustaining life in all persons who are alive.

How can you convey this outlook to your hospital or nursing home team? For the institution that has a strong employee wellness program, not only do the workers and their families benefit, but so do the patients. For the patients who are unable to respond, they too receive the benefits of this wellness mind-set.

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Spread the Word so Health Care Can Heal

Meet Dr. Robert Butler.
He is a pioneer in geriatric health care. He also sees the growing need for change in health care for the aging population which also carries over into the care everyone receives. He believes there needs to be more public health and prevention in medicine. He also talks about drug toxicity, hospital errors, addictions from tobacco and alcohol, and poor nutrition. It sounds like there is so much in the world that needs tending to but the truth is we see the harsh realities in our hospitals and nursing homes.

Can our hospitals and nursing homes be leaders in revolutionizing health care? I believe with the ambition of Dr. Butler we can do this. It requires breaking some ingrained habits of course and the entire health care team must be on board from policy makers to those who provide direct patient care. Change isn't easy, but it can start with small steps. This has been talked about for a long time. Who wants to blaze a new trail and make it a reality? It starts with keeping our health care workers well so they can inspire their communities.

Watch this video of a recent speech. He is already inspired. Now we can do the same.

Watch Dr. Butler's Speech

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Give your health care team a solid wellness program
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Can A Thousand Eyes Help You?

Working in a hospital or nursing home where patient needs must be met 24 hours a day can get quite hectic. How many patients are on your floor or wing? How many staff people are available during the shifts? How often do we get interrupted by unusual events that also need our attention?

Prioritizing is very important and some tasks are left on the back burner. This is typical in health care when life saving action is necessary and patient care is always first.

When was the last time paperwork or non-urgent tasks were postponed? Last night? Earlier today? Just a few minutes ago?

Time goes by so quickly when it's busy and the new shift has arrived. They feel as if they were dumped by the previous shift's workers. "Sorry, it was a real zoo here the last few hours."

The good news is we all can play a role in preventing loose ends from making our day more difficult.

Take the Thousand Eye Approach.

We have the benefit of each other to help us get through the day. Health care workers who are in tune with keeping shifts running smoothly know when to step in a take care of a task that would really be inconvenient at a later time.

Restocking supplies, picking up a spill, delivering a message promptly or following up on a message can be time savers later.

We have each other to help us with their Thousand Eyes. We may not always have 500 people right at our side who take the initiative to alert us to possible problems that can be prevented, but we have enough co-workers around us to give us this support and each of us can return the favor.

It can get out of hand, however. The Thousand Eye approach can turn into a big tattle tale or complaining session. This idea is not designed to be that way. Friendly reminders or favors are much better received when the intention is understood that it is not a criticism.

"Hey, it's the thousand eyes." Let someone know you're looking out for them and ultimately the patients who are the final beneficiaries of our attention to detail. People in different levels of the chain of command should be able to feel free to communicate with each other in this manner when "the thousand eyes" are are here to help.

Be one of the thousand eyes.
Be devoted to your team.

Build Your Workforce with the Guide to Starting a Wellness Committee