Why is it so hard to get discharged from hospital?

Sorry Cabbie

I'm glad you're both home safely 🙂

Wonderful news!

Cabbie glad you are both home safely. You both need a good rest. 💐

Glad your home Cabbie. You’ll both be exhausted today. Hope your DH continues to improve.

This is not a new issue. I was a hospital social worker from 1989-1995 facilitating the discharge by arranging ongoing support at home for people who had a range of chronic illness including stroke, AIDS or rheumatoid arthritis. One of the great mysteries was the long wait for medication before discharge could take place. I would often pop onto the ward if I could to say cheerio, reassure regarding follow up arrangements and where necessary, arrange to collect the meds en route. I never thought to ask why this was such a recurrent cause of delay for patients as it was one of the many tasks I quietly carried out to 'oil the wheels' where people were coping with life changing challenges. Sadly, like so many health and care professionals nowadays, social workers are overwhelmed with increasingly complex needs to be met in the community with rapidly dwindling resources to draw on and many are leaving the profession after decades of derision by the media.

It's not the staff, it's the system, poor use of staff and resources. The problem is trying to instigate change. Glad you are home safe and sound.

One of the biggest problems in the health service is communication: within hospitals and without.

When my late DH was ill, I waited around all day several times for discharge to be completed. On one occasion we thought we could avoid the delay by asking for the medication to be collected from our local pharmacy when we got home instead of the hospital pharmacy, which was agreed. The problem was that we still had to wait for other things and got home in the evening after the pharmacy shut on a Friday so had to wait until Monday for medication.

I am well aware of how the system works so the last time I had major surgery I started asking (nagging!) the previous day if my drugs were ordered and if I had my discharge forms ready. Even so, the person picking me up had to wait. I was not amused because it was not necessary.

Many years ago after breaking my ankle and having surgery, I refused to be moved to the discharge lounge. I was non weight bearing with crutches and could only walk a couple of yards. I stayed on my bed, I did not care!

It was the bane of our lives when DH was in and out of hospital last year. I had to have our son in law on standby for hours so that we could drop everything and go and pick him up, and even then, he wasn’t always ready to go. I’m glad you’re both at home now, Cabbie.

Callistemon21

^Pharmacies in hospitals now are often privatised businesses.
The service they provide in what is basically a monopoly is usually dreadful.^

I'm not sure that is the case everywhere because hospital pharmacists here have been undertaking telephone appointments here on behalf of the hospital consultants, although this is not always made clear to the patient. Apparently, they are considered to be part of the team and I was told would know more about the drugs than the doctors.

I didn't mean to question their expertise but their customer service provisions. If I went into a pharmacy on the high street that always had queues and kept me waiting over an hour I'd simply go to a different one. In a hospital you can't.

Talking of medication, it took almost an hour together to make up his dosette box this morning. Lots of new tablets, and some of his old ones, but some different doses. He has difficulty swallowing so had asked for as many as possible in liquid form: there were none. Fortunately I had already bought a tablet crusher.
I also got through to the GP surgery at first attempt! I was assured that they will put the new meds order through to the pharmacy, so I am optimistic that it will get sorted before DH runs out. I also had no argument about getting a face to face GPappointment for next week, though I need to ring tomorrow for that.

SueDonim

If it’s like where my dd works, the various IT systems don’t talk to each other and these things have to be done manually.

This! 👆🏻

Communications seem to be absolutely dire in many hospitals.

I'm currently in hospital in Glasgow and this popped up on my tablet.

i have had the same problem a few times over the last few years, i know they are busy and i am not being unkind but i give them till 12 lunchtime and then i say i am leaving, i ask if the doctor has to see me before i leave and this is always no, i ask if my meds have changed and if so write it down and my gp can sort it and can they please send any paperwork to me or my doctor, i explained that i am not going to sit for hours in a waiting room when i all i wanted to do was lie down as i was wearing two drainage bags after have all my groin lymph nodes removed. doctors and nurses are busy enough and sticking some paperwork in an envelope is much easier than having me sitting there.

Best wishes, Marydoll, I hope you'll soon be home again

I had a telephone appointment this morning with a Consultant: "Do Not Attend the Hospital, this is a Telephone Appointment"
Now I have to trek 20 miles into same hospital, same department, to pick up my medication. I hope it's there.
You couldn't make it up, as they say.

Cabbie I’m so glad your DH is now home and I hope that you have support in place (if needed). Take it easy and be kind to yourself. It’s hard work being a carer x

Marydoll I hope it won’t be too long before you’re able to go home too. I hope the Drs are able to make you more comfortable and sort out your meds etc. Take care x

I have to say, my experience was very positive. I was told I was being discharged yesterday afternoon, meds came to the ward and DH picked me up an hour later. All very slick!

I have been down the discharge lounge route too and it too was efficient.

Brilliant news! Glad you’re home… there is nothing like it 😊