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To make people feel better

Posted , 14 users are following.

bini31328
bini31328

just thought i would contribute how things were when i started nursing 35 + years ago .i remember being a student nurse on an orthopaedic ward - hip replacement patients spent 10 days minimum  flat on their backs in bed with a large triangle of foam called a charnley  wedge between them. You had to be rolled in that position to go on a bed pan , have sheets changed etc . You were utterly dependent on nursing staff for eveything , plus no tv in hospital other than the day room which you couldnt get to . Hospital food ( yuk) , very limited visiting hours . Plus a catheter for 10 days was standard . After the 10-14 days you got up for half an hour each am and pm and at about 3 weeks you went home . Its amazing how far everything has moved on since then , most of us are up the day of surgery , home in a few days etc etc im not saying we are lucky needing hip surgery but im very glad to be a patient now and not then ! 

9 likes, 40 replies

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  • lynn66084
    lynn66084 bini31328

    Posted

    Wow, that long, not moving about, did the muscles waste, must of really been hard when they started to move about.  Think it is better now, a lot of hospitals are just in and out now.
    • bini31328
      bini31328 lynn66084

      Posted

      Yes , was really hard for people to get moving -think everyone was on a zimmer at first 
  • basia58126
    basia58126 bini31328

    Posted

    Your post has made me feel blessed and fortunate!  Having a catheter for so long must have resulted in a high rate of infections. The whole experience would have been awful! 
    • bini31328
      bini31328 basia58126

      Posted

      I remember people used to get really miserable and tearful - at least when we get like that now its in the privacy of our own homes . Cant remember infections being particularly high but we had to carry out carheter care three times daily to prevent it - such an intrusion on anyones dignity ! 
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