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[JRoss]

Hello everyone.  

I found this forum after watching SESSION 9.  :-)    I've enjoyed reading the various threads so much that I had to join.  This is a new world!  Fascinating!  I have so many questions for anyone that can answer please!


Whats the worst thing that has or could happen in a psych ward?  

Seems to me that the staff or patients should be afraid for their life... anything could happen at any moment... couldnt it?

Thanks in advance for your input!

:-)

[JRoss]

is what I had asked offensive?  No one is responding.   :cry:

[Navi]

JRoss,

When posting on a forum, it's important to note that many of us have jobs or activities that prevent us from being here all day or all night (though I'm sure some of us might like that!), so your questions aren't always immediately answered.

From what I've learned on the forums so far, I don't believe I agree that "anything" could happen in a psych ward. One could say, if you leave your house and cross the street, you could get hit by a bus, that anything could happen. But most of us don't get hit by busses, because we take precautions - we look both ways, we wait for the light to change, or we wait for oncoming vehicles to pass. In psych wards, the staff take precautions to prevent things like violent patients running amuck.

One example I can remember is when my friend and I worked in a hospital kitchen, where we would put together trays of food to bring to the different floors, including the psych ward. There was an incident in which someone accidentally placed a giant knife on one of the psych ward trays and didn't realize it until it was gone!  :shock: But the staff always check the food before it's served to the patients, so there was no possible way any patient could have gotten ahold of the knife. That's really the specific reason why the food is checked (the patients aren't allowed regular silverware or plastic wrap).

That's also why, in many of the photos here, you'll see isolation rooms and restraint devices (though to my knowledge, all the restraint devices shown here were for physically handicapped patients, not for holding anyone down - but that's not to say restraint devices were/are never used).

Of course, there are people here who have worked in these environments, so correct me if I'm wrong on anything, it's mostly just my opinion.  

[Dr Sketch]

Yeah, most of the people in a position to know about this (the actual workers) are, sadly, AT WORK, so they can't answer yet...  I imagine (I HOPE) that Lynnie will stop by later and answer this better than most of us can, since she does this day in and day out...  Any info I could give would be second or third hand, and most of it would be from her...

[JRoss]

fantastic.  thank you!

[Tony C.]

Hi, JRoss, and welcome! Wish I could put up my signature waving hand from here...(they block photobucket from work here...nasty little !%*$'s) I'll put one in later....You'll like it here, we are a fun bunch!
Give it some time...Could be all day, but you WILL get PLENTY of responses!!!!

[bill door]

Hi JRoss.

I work in a special school with kids who have a range of difficulties.
I've done this job sionce 1985. It's been fun, and fustrating.

I've seen a member of staff hospitalised by an eight year-old and I've seen another spend 2 hours teaching another kid how to buy a bus ticket.

But, mostly, I don't go into details about our kids and their educational experiences.

Because...

[Navi]

Maybe the same reason my mother's not *supposed* to discuss her students' progress? She does anyway.  :roll: (Not that I'm saying you should. My mother, by the way, is a pre-school teacher but she works for Head Start, which is notorious for trying to help low-income families and whatnot - except she ends up as a behaviour management specialist most of the time for the messed up kids!)

[Lyric]

FOLKS-  I have to remind everyone about this, simply cuz... It's the law.


Under the HIPPAA Act and other Privacy Protection Laws, discussing patients or experiences is a very gray area.
While many of us who work in Medicine often discuss certain things amongst one another and our families, we still have to do it carefully.

Proper Names, Locations, Known Aliases, or phsycial descriptions are a complete and total NO NO (in fact if we Moderators catch a description of a person/patient here, we will delete the post the moment we see it).

To understand this, imagine telling a story about your best friend, and yet you cannot describe what they look like, you can't share names or nicknames, you can't say where you were when the event happened or who was with you, you can't even immitate your pal's laugh if they have one that has dramatic character (a snort or a squeak)


So, while you have asked, and often the retelling of the history of our working environments and experiences may be amusing even to us.. we may not be able to share it.
So... if this particular thread gets minimal responses, that's why.  


Also to, please remember that we do have patients and former patients who visit this site, and we encourage them to share experiences, should they be soo inclined, at that point it is totally up to the patient either current or former, to disclose this kind of information.
Some will, some won't.

This is another reason that we who work in medical/mental health care CAN'T give descriptions of people, places, things, as one of our patients could be reading this too.   AND, if they know we just described them in an embarassing situation.. we're in trouble... we not only told the planet... We put it in PRINT.




Anyway.. I hope this explains the lack of response.

[Ectoplasmic Terrier]

Yeah, confidentiality is a big priority in all areas of medicine, not just behavioral health, especially since the HIPPAA Act .  I do a lot of clerical work with medical charts, you have to be REALLY careful.  Reasons are fairly obvious.  

I would love to hear the stories a lot of people on this board have to tell, but it's they're ass on the pan if they do!

[Kim]

Well this my own story so it not violating hippa laws.
  I was in recieiving hospial in detroit as far as I am concerned it was worse than hell in fact hell would have been nice  It was not the patients it was the staff. I was not  sexual abuse more like mental abuse.  I later learned that when I am manic I can be very angry and will take it out on any one I later learned this at anouther hospital a couple weeks later. where the staff and Dr. who I still have now really cares and well give me a hug when I'm cring my eyes out because I'm so depressed.
  I was admitted on a wednesday they had no blankets so they gave me 8 sheets to sleep under until  friday when I would get real blankets. I was admitted 1-31-01 which in mich is a cold month sheets replacing blanket. II was seeen by the nurse partinicer sp who wroter several rx's for my and my psychatrist said she would come back at a later time before leaving for the day.  I went to the nurses desk and asked them to call my dr.and see when she was going to come see me and see when i was going to get my meds. the nurse ordered. they said they where not calling the Dr and the nurse never ordered any meds. I stayed at the desk and they told me if i stayed there I would be put in  the quiet room.  so they threw me in there
 I was again thrown into the quiet roomwhen the nurse wasreaching to grab my glasses even thou i had a pencil in my hand She fell on me they slamed the door shut I could not get up for several minutes my leg and ankle hurt so much. when I got out I told her in not so nice way that she feel on top of me but she denied it an refused to allow me to see a dr. I had a bruise the size ofa large grapefruite on one leg and one baseball on the otherknee  when I got out of the hospital I had to see my dr found out that I had cellulitis an infection of the connective tissue beneath the skin had to take antibotics 4xs a day  
  The next morning I asked the nurse who was passing med where was my allergy med she said that i recieved them at 5 am I told he that never recieved them and it when back and forth for a minute and I said what ever a nurse from the front desk came to the lunch room withan angry faceand she brought two mental health workers and draged me to the quiet room. i waas in there 10 minutes when they opened the door and said. get this " now kimberly don't think We hate you but you where right you didn't get your allergy medicine this morning we're sorry the midnight nurse signed that she gave it but did give it." they gave my allergy medicine and walked me to my room and tucked me in my bed .  if i raised my voiceor raised my voicei was put in quiet room was given ativan two times
  When i was being dicharged they could not find my key and id for over 2 hour s it was in other paitent bags i felt worstthan when i went in I was only there for 6 days and was in quiet room 5 times and in other hospitals for 2 weeks and never in the quiet room.
 In fact a couple weeks later I was put in the hospital and told the staff who know me from a prevous hospital that has been torn down about what happened at this hospital and they where like why would they put you in the quiet room you never act out never cause trouble.  Instead of throwing them into the quiet rooom they would somehow get a person walking towards the t.v. room.  This is the staff and Dr. who still care for me now and are they are still here me for me I need them.

[carmen]

Yipes...that does not sound good, Kim...sorry you had to go through that.

[Kim]

The dr. I have now he is a sweet heart I'm not to go to the hospital unless I speak to him. In fact I just got out of the partial day program which is like inpatient but is only durning the day and you go home at night and weekend and it last two weeks. they ajust your medications while you go to group arts and crafts nuring groups ocuptional terapy you see your dr. every day.  The staff is wonderful and very caring almost like family to me but I have been going to this program and hosptal since 01 and they are there for you.  I know many of the patients we cross paths on and off.  but it's funny I'm always the person everyone goes to for directions so i'm the tour guide I think I should get paid.   There are very few programs like this there where about 5 day programs in our area now just 1 is still open.  The vans will go 30 miles to pick people up to go to this program.

[autoguy]

JRoss, a search through Big Ed's posts will get you some stories from the inside.

Best of luck Kim, hang in there!  It sounds like things are getting better for you!

[Big Ed]

JRoss, a search through Big Ed's posts will get you some stories from the inside.

Best of luck Kim, hang in there!  It sounds like things are getting better for you!

The stories I tell have been sanitized somewhat.  Although a number of them have made the papers names and all..  HIPPA is a big reason I don't share more.  Trust me I'd like to share more of the stuff thats happened to me over the last 30 years.  HIPPA and the desire to not make people vomit.  Some of the really good ones are also the grossest you've ever heard.