Keeping your loved one safe during and after a hospital stay | Guest Column

http://www.redmond-reporter.com/community/372149691.html#

Hospital stays can occasionally have some additional complications. Research estimates up to 440,000 Americans are dying annually from preventable hospital errors. This puts medical errors as the third leading cause of death in the United States, underscoring the need for patients to protect themselves and their families from harm, and for hospitals to make patient safety a priority based on a report from the Leapfrog Group.

Many of these errors include falls, urinary tract infections, c-diff infections, blood clots, medication mix ups, bed sores, pneumonia and more.

CampaignZERO is an organization that provides a checklist for times when you, a friend or a family member is in the hospital and Aegis Lodge in Kirkland will be hosting a seminar titled “Safe & Sound in the Hospital (and after)” at 6 p.m. April 13. The event is free to attend and attendees will also receive a copy of the checklist that CampaignZERO has developed. This event is the first of a series of events that Aegis Lodge is hosting for the community to educate caregivers on “ how to keep an elderly person safe.”

Other organizations, like AARP are also working hard to enact the Caregiver Advise, Record, Enable (CARE) Act and help family caregivers as their loved ones go into the hospital and transition out (to home or a senior housing environment).

Discharges from hospital usually follow a very stressful time at the hospital and Aegis Lodge is helping families with resources on how to plan for a successful discharge and avoid readmissions. Hospitals also have a big focus on preventing readmissions as the centers for Medicare and Medicaid services implemented the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program four years ago. A checklist called Safe Discharge Back Home is available at Aegis Lodge and free to the public.

Sandra Cook is the marketing director at Aegis Lodge in Kirkland. You may reach her at (425) 814-2841

Filed under: General Problems