This is why I shouldn't watch the news (especially just before bed) EDIT TO ADD
Nurse refuses to perform CPR despite 911 dispatcher's plea
An elderly woman being cared for at a California retirement facility died following the refusal of a nurse at the facility to perform CPR on the woman after she collapsed, authorities said.
When Lorraine Bayless, an 87-year-old resident of Glenwood Gardens, Bakersfield, collapsed at the facility around 11 a.m. Tuesday, a staff member called 911 but refused to give the woman CPR, according to a recording of the call.
In refusing the 911 dispatcher's insistence that she perform CPR, the nurse can be heard telling the dispatcher that it was against the retirement facility's policy to perform CPR.
During the exchange between the nurse and the dispatcher, the dispatcher can be heard saying "I don't understand why you're not willing to help this patient.''
An ambulance arrived several minutes after the call and took Bayless to a hospital, where she was later pronounced dead. She has been identified as a resident of the home's independent facility, which is separate from the skilled and assisted nursing facility.
The retirement facility released a statement extending its condolences to the family and said its "practice is to immediately call emergency medical personnel for assistance and to wait with the individual needing attention until such personnel arrives.''
The statement also said a "thorough internal review of the matter'' would be conducted.
A call to the facility by The Associated Press seeking more information on the incident was not immediately returned.
Bayless' daughter told a reporter for KGET, the NBC affiliate in Bakersfield, that she was also a nurse and was satisfied with the care her mother received.
I did think about that, but I would imagine that if that were the case and the resident(s) had a DNR, the nurse who called 911 would have explained that to the 911 operator, instead of simply saying that she is not permitted to perform CPR.
Quoting stormcris:A facility like this can have entire facility DNRs. The people who place their relatives in such are normally made well aware of such and those are the wishes of the family.
The problem with the articles is that they don't tell you the whole story. The woman may have been very ill. She may have had a conversation with the nurse that she didn't want to continue going on. She was 87 years old after all.. If those were the cases, what's the point? I had a great aunt who refused to resusitate her older sister because the quality of life was missing. The doctor got mad but it was for the best. Life isn't all it's cracked up to be at certain points in life depending on the person's healthy, etc. No sense to continue and sometimes, your mission on earth is over and time to go "Home."
She explained it was the facility's policy and the facility backed her up with their statement. The facility has the DNR which for legal purposes would be a part of the paperwork signed at admission and most likely verbally explained just to cover bases. Thus if paramedics had arrived in time they could have well preformed CPR pending a personal DNR.
The daughter apparently was aware of the policy as well as she was satisfied with the care her mother received.
Quoting LDavis33:I did think about that, but I would imagine that if that were the case and the resident(s) had a DNR, the nurse who called 911 would have explained that to the 911 operator, instead of simply saying that she is not permitted to perform CPR.
Quoting stormcris:A facility like this can have entire facility DNRs. The people who place their relatives in such are normally made well aware of such and those are the wishes of the family.
Quoting agrisham13mom:
Wow... I am a nurse and couldn't imagine standing by not doing something. Unless the patient had a DNR on file it doesn't state if maybe all the patients in this facility have DNR orders or not. It may explain the whole thing if that is the case.
Why bother to call 911? I don't know what the policies are in that retirement home. Also, how can a 911 operator insist that a qualified or unqualified person who may or may not know CPR perform CPR?
Quoting LDavis33:I did think about that, but I would imagine that if that were the case and the resident(s) had a DNR, the nurse who called 911 would have explained that to the 911 operator, instead of simply saying that she is not permitted to perform CPR.
Quoting stormcris:A facility like this can have entire facility DNRs. The people who place their relatives in such are normally made well aware of such and those are the wishes of the family.
telling anyone about a DNR is against HIPAA
Would it be against HIPAA if there were a universal DNR that all residents signed upon moving in? Just curious. And, if a personal DNR were in place, why would they call 911? If she didn't wish to be resuscitated, why call for help?
I'm just throwing this out there. I don't know the whole story, and obviously her daughter was happy with the care she received, so nothing more will come of this. Just listening to the frustration in the 911 operators voice was enough to bother me.
Quoting Veni.Vidi.Vici.:
Quoting LDavis33:I did think about that, but I would imagine that if that were the case and the resident(s) had a DNR, the nurse who called 911 would have explained that to the 911 operator, instead of simply saying that she is not permitted to perform CPR.
Quoting stormcris:A facility like this can have entire facility DNRs. The people who place their relatives in such are normally made well aware of such and those are the wishes of the family.
telling anyone about a DNR is against HIPAA
But perhaps she did and the news omitted that b/c it makes for a better story . . . they have done that in the past.
To the OP - yeah, stop watching the news, they report on all kinds of things that really aren't helpful and will only keep you awake at night. And if your Gma is in a facility make sure you visit her often, as I'm sure you do. I lost my Grandma just a few months ago and while I did visit it was depressing to see how empty the place was - even on Christmas, very VERY few people.
Quoting LDavis33:I did think about that, but I would imagine that if that were the case and the resident(s) had a DNR, the nurse who called 911 would have explained that to the 911 operator, instead of simply saying that she is not permitted to perform CPR.
Quoting stormcris:A facility like this can have entire facility DNRs. The people who place their relatives in such are normally made well aware of such and those are the wishes of the family.
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- LDavis33
on Mar. 3, 2013 at 9:35 AM