incompetent hospital staff
Had a minor procedure done under anesthesia at the hospital earlier today (nothing to do with D). I had been fasting, and therefore taking no insulin since lunch yesterday-- as I take no long acting, this is no big deal for me. I tested my fasting glucose level this morning-- 97-- perfect. The prep nurse recorded this number in my chart. Upon waking up after the procedure (4 hours after the fasting test, without any food or insulin since), the recovery nurse was telling me I needed to have a milkshake right away becasue my glucose levels were low. I was still groggy and had no idea what she was talking about. Had they tested me while I was under? How could I possibly be low? Luckily my wife, a nurse, was right there with me. No-- they had not tested me. No, I was not low.
Apparantly the hospital nurse thought that because my fasting level was 97, 4 hours prior, the first order of business upon waking was to slam a milkshake down a type 1 diabetics throat without any bolus.
I'm glad I immediately realized how ridiculous this was and of course didn't eat anything at that time-- but what if I had been a little kid or an older person who wan't thinking as fast as they used to? Pretty ridiculous.
Went home and tested at 110 before bolusing and eating. I didn't opt for the milkshake.
Does anyone else have comparable observations?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by DianaS on -
This is appalling. I would be calling customer service with a complaint if I was in your shoes.
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Permalink Reply by Clare on -
I guess I have been lucky, in that all of my most recent surgical procedures have been done under local anesthetic with some kind of happy drug combination to make me pleased about being cut. But my main concern has always been getting me my caffeine as soon after the surgery as possible. Without caffeine I get a wicked bad headache and it doesn't matter what my blood sugar is, I just can't function. But I do agree most places have no idea what to do or how to deal with PWD. Glad you didn't drink the milkshake. Of course the only advantage to being a PWD is we get the earliest times available for surgery, we don't have to wait starving all afternoon until our time comes up.
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Permalink Reply by Matthew Yarbrough on -
During my last Sinus Surgery, which was done as an out patient, I had an argument with the nurse doing my pre-op interview and blood work. I cannot take humalog due to the latex in the stopper and used in production. It causes me to itch all over and my throat to get tight and scratchy. I do not need to have direct contact with the stopper either. It happens when I fill my pump reservoir. She was insistant that humalog was their preferred insulin and that they would use shields if i needed any. I had to speak to their legal dept to get her to understand taht I could not take humalog insulin.
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