Man told he's dying via robot video link

[+and-then]

12 minutes ago, freetoroam said:

I still thing we are missing something. The daughter was not there to hear what was said.

I can not believe the doctor would have told the grand-daughter just like that.

 

When my sister and I were told - along with our mom - that mom was dying of lung cancer and had 6-weeks, the Oncologist was standing in the room at bedside and showed no more emotion than if he were telling us the weather.  Some doctors are brilliant but have no ability to exude compassion.  Some don't bother to try.  I'd rather have a surgeon with excellent skills and Imaginary One's bedside manner than a compassionate dolt working on me. If this guy was a couple of days from dying, I think his family probably knew the score, anyway.  It could have been handled better but when the ratio of patients to doctors begins to climb to its peak in the coming decade, expect a lot more of such stories.

Edited March 10, 2019 by and then

[freetoroam]

39 minutes ago, Gromdor said:

I'm rather curious as to where this doctor was that he needed a robot to tell the patient/family.  Telling them in person when someone only has a few days to live is pretty pointless if you are more than a few days away. 

The family had already had talks with the doctor and a diagnoss.

For all we know, the grand-daughter could have actually asked him what the next step was.

We are only getting part of the story and what went on social media initially was not even a family member or someone who was there at the time.

Quote

Julianne Spangler, a friend of Mr Quintana's daughter, posted a photo of the robot on Facebook

She was not there. The grand-daughter must have taken a picture then sent it to this girl.....i am taking it was just a photo send by the grand-daughter as i can not believe she would have whipped out her phone to record  the robot prior to knowing what was going to be said. 

(Do they allow mobiles in hospitals over there around sensitive equipment?) 

Something is missing here. Like the FULL story.

 

[skliss]

"First do no harm..." These doctors take oaths. If there was no way the guys personal physician could be present, surely there were on call doctors that could give the news or be with the family when it was delivered. Think about what you would want.

I had surgery last monday. I was surprised and pleased with the amount of personal attention and consideration from every staff member. My surgeon even asked if we could say a prayer before I was given anesthetic.  It was comforting.

[freetoroam]

2 minutes ago, and then said:

When my sister and I were told - along with our mom - that mom was dying of lung cancer and had 6-weeks, the Oncologist was standing in the room at bedside and showed no more emotion than if he were telling us the weather.  Some doctors are brilliant but have no ability to exude compassion.  Some don't bother to try.  I'd rather have a surgeon with excellent skills and Imaginary One's bedside manner than a compassionate dolt working on me. If this guy was a couple of days from dying, I think his family probably knew the score, anyway.  It could have been handled better but when the ratio of patients to doctors begins to climb to its peak in the coming decade, expect a lot more of such stories.

We have no idea how the doctor said what ever he said, he may well have said it with compassion.

When my father was hour away from dying, we knew he did not have long,  it would have made no difference to me if the doctor have told me the final bit in person, by phone, by letter, by pigeon or by robot. What really mattered is that i was THERE with him.

The doctors did their bit, i did not expect them to give me their shoulder.

 i believe the family knew he had only days,   what matters is they were there at the final moments. 

 

[freetoroam]

6 minutes ago, skliss said:

My surgeon even asked if we could say a prayer before I was given anesthetic.  It was comforting.

WHAT? You call that comforting? 

Jeeze, i would have been outta there! 

[+and-then]

7 minutes ago, skliss said:

"First do no harm..." These doctors take oaths. If there was no way the guys personal physician could be present, surely there were on call doctors that could give the news or be with the family when it was delivered. Think about what you would want.

I had surgery last monday. I was surprised and pleased with the amount of personal attention and consideration from every staff member. My surgeon even asked if we could say a prayer before I was given anesthetic.  It was comforting.

I'd say you were blessed in your caretakers.  It's what I'd want from my own and what many places still offer.  All I'm saying is that as the numbers continue to skew away from a level that individuals can cope with daily, we can expect less personal care.  A nurse who is responsible for the care of 20 or more patients per shift cannot possibly take the time to be as comforting with each as a nurse who cares for half that number.  Welcome to "Medicare for all".

[skliss]

3 minutes ago, freetoroam said:

WHAT? You call that comforting? 

Jeeze, i would have been outta there! 

Why? Everyone was fantastic and I had full faith in the guy. If you don't believe, what harm is there in words? Good, positive words.

[skliss]

3 minutes ago, and then said:

I'd say you were blessed in your caretakers.  It's what I'd want from my own and what many places still offer.  All I'm saying is that as the numbers continue to skew away from a level that individuals can cope with daily, we can expect less personal care.  A nurse who is responsible for the care of 20 or more patients per shift cannot possibly take the time to be as comforting with each as a nurse who cares for half that number.  Welcome to "Medicare for all".

So when I got on the floor there were 14 patients for the 26 rooms. 24 hrs later there were 24 patients. I had a medtech and nurse assigned around the clock. When I could finally walk the unit I'd say there were around 15 to 20 staff on the floor.

[freetoroam]

2 minutes ago, skliss said:

Why? Everyone was fantastic and I had full faith in the guy. If you don't believe, what harm is there in words? Good, positive words.

I personally would not want to be asked if i want to pray before going under...thats not comforting words in my book.

"We will see you in a few hours" would have been what i call comforting. That is what i was told a few years back when i had an operation, that was all i needed to hear to reassure me as my life was in the surgeons hands = no one elses.

[skliss]

Just now, freetoroam said:

I personally would not want to be asked if i want to pray before going under...thats not comforting words in my book.

"We will see you in a few hours" would have been what i call comforting. That is what i was told a few years back when i had an operation, that was all i needed to hear to reassure me as my life was in the surgeons hands = no one elses.

If it sends him in with a positive attitude too then I'm all for it. You can always say no but I'm sure he would have prayed anyway. Many people would want to, nice to be given that option.

[freetoroam]

25 minutes ago, skliss said:

 If there was no way the guys personal physician could be present, surely there were on call doctors that could give the news or be with the family when it was delivered. Think about what you would want.

The family already had face to face talks

Quote

"The evening video tele-visit was a follow-up to earlier physician visits," she added. "It did not replace previous conversations with patient and family members and was not used in the delivery of the initial diagnosis."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-47510038

The only person there was the grand-daughter. As far as we know, she could have requested the doctor, the doctor is not going to turn up every time a cousin, uncle, aunt or grand-child  shows up and is not going to tell them individually what is happening. I think she should be thankful he spoke to her at all.

Note:  it was the grand-daughter and NOT the family in the room. The family already knew he did not have long. 

 

[skliss]

Just now, freetoroam said:

The family already had face to face talks

The only person there was the grand-daughter. As far as we know, she could have requested the doctor, the doctor is not going to turn up every time a cousin, uncle, aunt or grand-child  shows up and is not going to tell them individually what is happening. I think she should be thankful he spoke to her at all.

Note:  it was the grand-daughter and NOT the family in the room. The family already knew he did not have long. 

 

Still seems cold. I hate for this kind of behaviour to become the norm. And again we might not have 100% of the story. 

[freetoroam]

12 minutes ago, skliss said:

Still seems cold. I hate for this kind of behaviour to become the norm. And again we might not have 100% of the story. 

I do not think we have 40% of the story.

It may seemed cold for the grand-daughter, but she is not privvy to one to one discussions with the doctor...

i also want to know why she had her phone out next to her grand fathers bed.

Over here you can not take pictures with a mobile phone in units with :

Quote

Areas where using mobile phones could be forbidden or restricted include:

• Critical or intensive care wards and units
•  
• Any area where specialist medical equipment is being used to treat a patient

The NHS says mobile phone interference can stop lifesaving equipment from working correctly.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/cant-patients-use-mobile-phones-12974257.amp

 

 

 

[Timothy]

3 hours ago, Piney said:

That was going to be my next status update. Every antivaxer should be criminally charged for child endangerment. As for the one's whose children were sickened. They should be tied to a pillory and whipped. Then charged with attempted murder.

 

 

There are nurses. A human factor is needed with that kind of news. 

I agree 100% with the anti vax stuff. Criminally negligent.

Apparently there was a human with the robot, as per their policy. 

3 hours ago, susieice said:

He actually died 2 days later. My problem with this is that the man was in the hospital. Surely there was a doctor on staff that could have broke this news to the patient and his family. That is hard news to hear and I'm sure the family had questions even though they knew the man was dying. Medicine is becoming very impersonal and that, to me, is not a good thing. You don't even get to speak to your surgeon anymore until you go in for the surgery. 

Well you can thank inaccurate reporting; at least one of the articles said he died the next day.

I agree with the impersonal bit 100% too. There are good and bad people in any profession, however there aren’t always going to be the resources for the best or most caring approach. That’s just reality. 

[+susieice]

1 hour ago, and then said:

I'd say you were blessed in your caretakers.  It's what I'd want from my own and what many places still offer.  All I'm saying is that as the numbers continue to skew away from a level that individuals can cope with daily, we can expect less personal care.  A nurse who is responsible for the care of 20 or more patients per shift cannot possibly take the time to be as comforting with each as a nurse who cares for half that number.  Welcome to "Medicare for all".

I was also thinking along the lines of the nurses being the communicators. The article said the doctor wanted to put the man on a morphine drip. That takes a signature from a family member authorized to make decisions. It doesn't say if the man was alert and able to make that decision for himself. The message should have been given to his next of kin or authorized representative. Preferably the wife or adult children. I'm sure they would have had some questions about the drip and the test results that showed he was so close to death. A good nurse would be able to explain everything. It doesn't say if a nurse was present in the room or not. One should have been.

[Imaginarynumber1]

4 hours ago, freetoroam said:

WHAT? You call that comforting? 

Jeeze, i would have been outta there! 

There's a surgeon I wouldn't trust

[Imaginarynumber1]

4 hours ago, and then said:

Welcome to "Medicare for all".

You mean understaffed, overworked and facilities pushed to their limits.

Record profits, though.

 

Don't you work in the medical field? Surely you know this.

Edited March 10, 2019 by Imaginarynumber1

[+and-then]

53 minutes ago, Imaginarynumber1 said:

You mean understaffed, overworked and facilities pushed to their limits.

Record profits, though.

 

Don't you work in the medical field? Surely you know this.

People inside the beast know it better than others.  What is coming is worse than bad.  But hey, everybody will be covered!  (six feet of earth)...

[Farmer77]

18 minutes ago, and then said:

People inside the beast know it better than others.  What is coming is worse than bad.  But hey, everybody will be covered!  (six feet of earth)...

Weird everyone i know on the inside of the beast cant wait for some form of universal coverage as we see people suffering daily from things that only progressed because of the profit driven nature of the industry.

Edited March 10, 2019 by Farmer77

[the13bats]

I waited for all sides a while back and a smirk is still a smirk. Imho.

 

Seems this is just another example of cookie cutter medicine where the patient isnt treated even like cattle but just another number with a $ sign.

Back when i took my grandmother to her dr appt every 2 weeks he would double, triple book, a 3pm appt meant you might see him by 5pm, bs.

And you were allowed to discuss one issue per visit. Bs.

Same dr that when i said the rx made me sick he said take more.

No, its cold and inhumane to not tell a patient dire news human to human, if you are good with it fine but dont try to make it out as if its something its not.

 

No worries we'll get here soon enough....

[Timothy]

5 hours ago, susieice said:

I was also thinking along the lines of the nurses being the communicators. The article said the doctor wanted to put the man on a morphine drip. That takes a signature from a family member authorized to make decisions. It doesn't say if the man was alert and able to make that decision for himself. The message should have been given to his next of kin or authorized representative. Preferably the wife or adult children. I'm sure they would have had some questions about the drip and the test results that showed he was so close to death. A good nurse would be able to explain everything. It doesn't say if a nurse was present in the room or not. One should have been.

Yes it is unclear if a nurse/other doctor was present, which is their policy.

Is the photo from the OP’s first article a screen grab from the video she took though? (Remember that is the same article which says he does the next day, so it may be an unrelated photo, but it fits the description)

Edit: If you found the video she posted we would know for sure.

Edited March 10, 2019 by Timothy
Edit.

[Setton]

8 hours ago, Piney said:

Purdue Pharma, Insurance companies backed and owned by politicians and welfare profiteers who are politicians.......

.....Yeah, It is a American thing. But they do have a tendency to turn everything they touch to ****. I know that no Scandinavian politician would get away with any of their crap. They'd be in prison. 

I still find it unbelievable that in America, politicians are not only allowed to accept bribes, but it's accepted to the point of institutionalisation. 

[+susieice]

7 hours ago, Timothy said:

Yes it is unclear if a nurse/other doctor was present, which is their policy.

Is the photo from the OP’s first article a screen grab from the video she took though? (Remember that is the same article which says he does the next day, so it may be an unrelated photo, but it fits the description)

Edit: If you found the video she posted we would know for sure.

Just guessing, but this picture doesn't look like it was taken in a hospital room unless they played it from the hallway. That would be a big violation of the man's HIPAA rights. Everyone around would hear the doctor's diagnosis. I'll see if the granddaughter's video is posted somewhere, but there's a good chance she didn't put it online.

Edited March 10, 2019 by susieice

[+susieice]

9 hours ago, Farmer77 said:

Weird everyone i know on the inside of the beast cant wait for some form of universal coverage as we see people suffering daily from things that only progressed because of the profit driven nature of the industry.

There is a lot that medicaid/medicare doesn't cover also. You have to pay for it and also a private supplemental if you don't want thousands of dollars in bills. As far as a condition progressing, that will always happen. We are human, not immortal. 

[freetoroam]

1 hour ago, susieice said:

Just guessing, but this picture doesn't look like it was taken in a hospital room unless they played it from the hallway. That would be a big violation of the man's HIPAA rights. Everyone around would hear the doctor's diagnosis. I'll see if the granddaughter's video is posted somewhere, but there's a good chance she didn't put it online.

There appears to be a nurse behind the robot. I do not think the robot just waltzed in while the grand-daughter was on her own and spilled the beans.

It has been made clear, the family already had the initial diagnosis and consultation. 

I believe the grand-daughter asked to speak to the doctor, as i said, the doctors are not going to turn up every time one member turns up. 

I would still like to know if that photo is in the room, as mobiles are not permitte,  see post #38. Unless things are different over there and they have super dooper equipment which would never not get affected??