Have you ever found something and you tried to enlist others to help, but no one did? Just the thought that no one can be bothered is heartbreaking. Certainly, if most people were missing something of sentimental or financial value they would be able to recruit a number of people to help. In this case one is trying to find the rightful owner/owners of items found during a hospitalization.
A history of TBI seems to dismiss anything people say as being trivial, unimportant or ignored. When is anything important enough to get others to listen? If you were missing something very dear and near to you, it would be important. Are healthcare employees so overworked they can’t help patients or even call the appropriate personnel to help?
Now, one is depending on readers to help find the proper person to locate the owner or family of lost-n-found items. Just need to get items back to the right people. In one’s possession is an engagement and wedding rings that are engraved with a date.
Years have lapsed and I just came across the items again. This is how they came into my possession. Have you been hospitalized and no one heard what you were saying? Did they listen? Did they simply not want to be bothered? Did they even care? You already know symptoms may mean very little!
What happens if you find something of value to another and no one listens? No matter what you say you can’t convince the healthcare staff that the property is NOT yours. This is evidence that a history of TBI means: “don’t know what you’re talking about”! It’s time people listen to those with TBI. They do know what they are talking about!
Years have passed since this hospitalization and one tucked the items away and forgot about them, until one recently found where put one them! Energy was limited and could not use it running from department to department in the hospital to explain this situation.
It remains unresolved, and one needs to find the rightful owners. It’s just a small piece of the puzzle of what happens when healthcare professionals do not listen to patients.
One tried to hand over rings found in my room. One was told “they are yours”. I knew they were not my rings. I’m sure I know my own engagement and wedding rings! The wedding date is engraved in the band. It would be impossible to belong to one. According to the marriage date it was before I was born! Even that fact didn’t illicit a response or interest to help one or contact anyone else within the facility.
It’s my belief that the person they belong to was probably a patient in the same room just before my arrival. I found them in the bottom drawer and tried to turn them in. I wasn’t well, and medications I was put on made me worse!
I guess everything I said fell onto deaf ears…and that meant everyone I came into contact over a few day period in a world renowned healthcare facility.
Nothing I said was persuading enough for anyone to help me. Every nurse, doctor, and employee I told … never listened. They all refused to believe they were not mine! Maybe they just thought I was delusional! I finally just gave up but I wonder if they just didn’t want to deal with valuable items found. Now, I’m also wondering why security was never notified.
I’m still in search of the rightful owner. They are not my rings! This is the best example of how others do not listen … so how do you think this applies to symptoms and your healthcare?
If you have any specific connections or a means to resolution please notify me so this could be a small piece of the puzzle resolved. What situations have you been in that you were ignored because you have a TBI, chronic illness, or other and you feel that you’ve been discounted as “unimportant”?
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annesquared
May 7, 2013 at 3:50 am
I have been dismissed by healthcare providers.
This is one thing I found to work:
I ask them to write in the chart that I asked them to perform or do a test, procedure, referral – whatever. And that they refused, and their reason. That way it is documented in writing.
Once I ask them to do that, I have never had one refuse what I have already determined is a reasonable request.
The last time:
1. the diagnosis of lymphoma (the doctor was saying it was a rash, which had been r/o by my gp – and me.
Medicine is business. Ask for documentation. If that person doesn’t want to deal with it, ask for their supervisor. Heck, I fired my doctor at Mayo. She was not up to date on the latest research. Why the heck did I go there then?
I have done this on behalf of my children, my family members – and I advocate for others in the same manner. I also teach healthcare advocacy – and recommend the same.
brain injury self rehabilitation (BISR)
May 7, 2013 at 7:14 pm
This is an excellent idea to have healthcare professionals document the test, procedure or referral and they reason they refused to follow through with patients request. I’ve never thought of that one, even though I’ve consistently written everything and asked them to place in my chart. Just because we hand them written documentation doesn’t mean it stays in the chart. Actually, many times these things are mysteriously missing. Thank you for your feedback and I will recommend this. I too have fired many physicians, and I wish I didn’t wait so long … but I tried to trust. Take care and stay safe.
annesquared
May 7, 2013 at 11:21 pm
I am glad you found the idea useful. It works – sometimes I have to raise the eyebrows and insist. But either it is documented or the test is ordered. 95% of the time my “gut” is correct and the test was warranted.