My husband was ventilated and placed into a coma for around 3 weeks. He has done really well and has had his tracheostomy removed and is not needing any additional oxygen. He is now eating solids so the feeding tube is also gone. However he is really struggling with his mobility. I don’t want to be a relative who rings to moan to the hospital but I also want to know I have done everything in my power to help him. Should he be getting physio daily to help get him with rehabilitation? I feel like he has been moved from icu to a normal ward and just left. I have not been contacted once by a dr or nurse about the plan of action going forward. Should I be pushing them more on this to know what the plan is ? He has some use in his hands and arms but apart from that he has no other mobility. He has only been moved out of bed once in the past 5 days to try and get his body and legs moving.
Rehabilitation after icu: My husband was ventilated... - ICUsteps
Rehabilitation after icu
Yes you should be told what the plan is. Whilst we know the hospital is busy he should be getting physio . I had it in icu whist still sedated and also while I was being weened off. A different physio continue once I had stepped down to the ward. He will be very weak and I mean weak not just his legs and arms but wherever there are muscles. Normally someone isn’t allowed home until they can climb stairs
Hi, When my husband was moved down to a step down ward from ITU, I couldn't settle, he went from having his every breath recorded 24/7 , to a very busy step down ward. My fears settled after a couple of days, as I was able to see how many times a day he was monitored and checked on.Also when he first came round the most he could do was lift his hand and his head, the physio's did visit several times a day, but initially it was very basic task , such as squeezing a blown up glove. My husband was so weak he couldn't even hold a knife, glass etc.
The physio was really basic but extremely physically challenging for him, such as moving his arm above his head.
These were huge milestones in his recovery. My husband was a fit man who went to the gym 2/3 times a week, prior to covid his legs and arms were like concrete. It was incredibly painful for me to see him having to be put in a hoist to sit in a chair and to be placed on a commode and not able to stand without 5 physio's holding him up. I guess what I'm trying to say, is he is probably having physio but it will be so minimal at this stage . That said you should have an overview of his plan.
I know the hospitals are at breaking point currently and physio's are in demand like they have never been before , as I mentioned earlier he is probably having basic physio as he probably isn't strong enough yet to attempt much more . I hope this helps .
Yes he should be getting physio sessions - it’s essential to stop him deconditioning. Weekend physio sessions were always poor because it was different staff. I don’t know how you force the issue at a distance. I would suggest if you are really concerned, try and talk to the ward manager and/ or his doctor. If you get no joy, speak to hospital PALS team. It has always been the case that “the squeaky wheel gets the grease”.
My husband was in hospital from early August until late January and we both found the move to a ward incredibly difficult. I felt completely helpless and useless as the communication was not the same at all as it had been in ICU. I used to get my daily updates from my husband - who luckily by then was able to operate his phone to call me.
I know that as the hospital got busier with Covid cases increasing, the physios had a really tough job trying to fit everyone in. They could only give my husband 2 sessions a week (3 if we were lucky) and the nursing staff on the ward were too busy to be able to get him out of bed and into the chair etc.
I used to ask my husband to get the physios to phone me with an update once they had been to see him and they were quite good at doing this. I was then able to chat to them about the plan going forward. My husband was lucky to be transferred to a rehabilitation centre for the last 3 weeks of his hospital stay and he came on leaps and bounds in that time. I think this was mainly due to the nursing staff having a little more time to get him out of bed and encourage him to do more things for himself. He also got physio 4/5 times a week which was great too.
It is a horrible situation at the moment as I think the staff just don't have enough hours in the day but we obviously want our loved ones to get the attention/care that they would normally have received (prior to Covid). I would definitely recommend trying to get hold of the physio team to talk to them about their goals and the plan going forwards. I hope you manage to get somewhere with it all x
Hi. I had covid last april. Because we were isolated in a 4 bed ward, my physio was a once a day walk to end of ward and back. To be honest I could not have managed much more ! I became stronger rapidly. Our leaving criteria was to be able to walk a few steps. I agree with sepsur re contacting ward or pals to know the likely restricted plan. Btw, most i knew who left with covid could not climb stairs upon their return. I could and this seemed a bit of an exception. Good luck 👍❤️
I agree that he should be getting physio, and also you should be able to get updates daily. Like @Ferham I found it very unsettling when my husband was moved from ICU to the ward, even though that was a very positive step!
It was harder to get info on a daily basis in the ward but I kept trying. You need to ask for a consultant to ring you.
As for a rehab plan I agree with @Sepsur if you can’t get the information and if you find it impossible to get updates then talk to PALS. The hospital was inundated in the first covid wave when my husband was in hospital, but once I spoke to PALS (patient liaison) things quickly happened! My husband was in hospital 5 months and I did have to speak to PALS more than once, but they always helped.
Hi.I've been trying to get a second opinion or review of my brother
He was in ICU in October 2019.
Then moved to a rehab hospital. Was ill there and transferred to the acute hospital
Back and forth.
He is now a quadraplegic.
He was moved to awhst was supposed to be a rehab care home to get him out of hospital do covid parents could be in the hospitals
The home was in lockdown dur to covid. There was no rehab as you would have expected there to have been.
He has never had an ICU follow up or under any one consultant
Basically he feels they wrote him off
Family asked for a meeting with a consultant to just discuss what happened to my brother. Why he is as he is.
Mostly bedbound. His wheelchair hurts him. He had mould measurement earlier this year. He is still waiting
For a wheelchair he can be comfortable in. So consider 2020 and no suitable wheelchair and no one to help the family to chase it up.
A consultant will meet us but he won't meet anywhere other than the hospital.
My brother is stretcherbound aNd we cannot get him to the hospital.
We are at loss now as to how to have this meeting. My brother requires face to face so he can hear what is being said.
He has sight hearing speech aNd mobiliy issues.
So sensory issues.
We just cannot get any support.
The home is nor too far from the hospital. Obstacles all the time.
With regards to CHC funding. Has anyone got any wording that they've put in and been successfully in a full chc funding result. Any info would help.
Eyes - drops four x a day.
Plus requests eyes wiping numerous times within an hour.
Type 2 diabetic.
Insulin. Readings up and down.
Varies-being monitored
Hearing ?.
Eyesight ?
Cannot use hearing aids or specs but both are required.
Speech disphaghi. Slurred quiet difficult to understand.
Itchy scalp and forehead.
Skin delicate
Unable to move from the neck down.
Legs now going wonky.
Totally reliant 24/7 for everything to be done for him.
Mental health. Depression.
Major trauma overnight from being normal ok to quadraplegic.
Laying in bed
Reliant on 3 staff to move him. Hoist him.
Can anyone out there write in words how he comes indeed CHC.
Skin tissue viability. ?
Or a mixture of all four headings
Covers medically.
Primary health care need.
Any suggestions gratefully appreciated.
Good luck fir your loved ones recovery.
Looking forwards.
Hi Twoblu
You would be better creating a post of your own - at present - your ‘post’ is a reply to an original post which is 3yrs old - most people will not see it 💙
Oh gosh. Sorry about that. I'm useless on IT didnt spot that. I am trying to cut it to put a new message on but I am struggling.
I've commented on a number of occasions here about the wide variation there is across the NHS regarding physio. I was given physio every day, from my final days in ICU to leaving hospital. Mild bed exercises in ICU, stepping up to learning to stand in HDU and learning to walk again on the general ward. I wasn't discharged until I could climb a flight of stairs. Having no physio seems a dereliction of care and should definitely be sorted out as per the suggestions given here.
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