Colonoscopy without support
Posted , 10 users are following.
I have been referred for a colonscopy to investigate several weeks of diarrhea and rectal bleeding. I have been reading the posts in this thread:
https://patient.info/forums/discuss/painful-colonoscopy-397954
about the pain that people have experienced during this procedure. Even before that, my GP had urged me to ask for sedation. However the hospital are insisting that I have someone stay with me for 24 hours after the procedure. I live alone and have no family. I have friends but no-one I feel that I could ask to give up what would effeectively be 26+ hours including the time immediately before and during the procedure. I do not feel that I can ask people to give up a day’s paid work or not be able to take care of their children or grandchildren in order to watch over me.
I have had a gastroscopy of the upper GI tract and a CT scan of the lower GI tract in the past with the necessary sedation and have felt fine 30 minutes after the procedures and for the rest of the day. The hospital is nearby and I walked home from both.
While I can see this might be necessary for older, frailer patients, 24 hours seems overkill for someone who is otherwise fit and healthy. I have been told that if I cannot decalre that I have someone stay with me for 24 hours than they will not do the procedure with sedation. After contacting the hospital patient liasion service I have now been told that they will have to arrange for an overnight bed for me so long as my GP will confirm that I have no-one. This seems a terrible waste of a hospital bed not to mention my GP’s time but my only option if I am going to have the tests done without a lot of pain. I suppose I could always discharge myself after a few hours. I’d rather go home and rest in the quiet of my own home rather than be among the noise of a busy hospital ward.
I thought I would post this here as I am sure I am not the only person who has no-one. According to an ageUK survey done in December 2014, 2.9 million older people (65+) in Great Britain feel they have no one to turn to for help and support and it bothers me that a lot of those people might be being forced into having painful medical procedures without sedation just because they happen to be alone.
1 like, 19 replies
etheremail cjb106
Posted
etheremail cjb106
Posted
tsimm97 cjb106
Posted
I have a colo on July 17 and complained to my GI nurse about having to stay over at someone's house. I live alone and having me stay over seems ridiculous to me. If I'm asleep and everyone else is asleep and something happens, who's going to do anything. I'm going to make a call tomorrow to see if I'll be required to spend the night with someone. If I am, I'm cancelling my colo.
cjb106 tsimm97
Posted
Hi tsimm. My original post was three years ago. Since then I have had three colonoscopies without sedation so I didn't have to bother with the 24 hour guard thing and it's been fine. It turned out I have mild to moderate (sometimes severe) Inflammatory Bowel Disease so it's necessary to get the endos done on a fairly regular basis.
The point you make is exactly the point a friend made. Do I have to sit on your bed and watch you? What happens if I'm asleep or you're asleep and something happens?
When I went for the first endo I asked the nurse why this need? She explained that the drugs are amnesia inducing and it was more (in her opinion) to do with being forgetful when you get home - putting a pan on the stove, forgetting it and setting fire to the house was her example.
Coincidentally, I have just had day knee surgery and encountered the same problem - needing to have someone with me overnight. I dug in my heels over it and said if they insisted then they had to keep me overnight - which they did. The procedure was being done on the NHS in a private hospital where I'd estimate well over 50% of the beds were empty so I did not feel I was taking up a bed needed by someone very ill plus the hospital said they would absorb the overnight costs not pass them on to the NHS (even if they could?)
As I was being prepped for theatre the anaesthetist said he would be perfectly happy for me to go home alone the same day but it is the hospital which insists on the 24 hour supervision for insurance purposes. A pre assessment nurse said she suspects many people go home alone and just lie about having someone there. We shouldn't have to lie. Why not just allow us to sign a disclaimer? I have good neighbours who are happy to keep an eye out for me. We have one another's numbers. They respect my need for privacy and preference for managing that 24 hour post-procedure period alone but are there if I need them. That should be enough.
As it was, I stayed in hospital for 24 hours after the knee surgery. I was in a room on my own with the door closed. The physio came in once, my blood pressure and temperature were checked every four hours, catering brought food and drink occasionally but most of the time I was alone. Had I collapsed out of reach of a call button it's doubtful anyone would have noticed until hours had elapsed so it makes a mockery of the whole thing.
Please don't cancel your procedure. Having it done without sedation isn't so bad and had I cancelled mine doctors would not have picked up the serious illness that needed rapid intervention.