Patient Overload
When your loved one is a patient in the hospital, your natural instinct might be to surrender control to the hospital staff because you believe, "they know what they are doing."

And they do.

But the first thing you must be aware of is that no matter how skilled and committed the nurses and physicians are in your loved one's case, most cannot overcome patient overload. That translates to a higher probability of medical error.

There is something you can do.

Nationwide Nursing Shortage
There is a nationwide, drastic nursing shortage, which means fewer nurses to tend to your loved one. Even if there is a nurse-to-patient ratio law in your state (1:5), in all likelihood the hospital has had to cut back on support staff so it has the financial ability to hire the required number of registered nurses. In many cases, your hospital has had to cut Certified Nursing Assistants (CNAs), Licensed Vocational Nurses (LVNs), nurse's aides, respiratory therapists, lab technicians, and part or all of their discharge planning departments. That means the registered nurses are now doing not only their own jobs, but also the jobs of the staff who have been cut.

There is something you can do.

Nurses and doctors are overworked and overwhelmed. Most claim they cannot do the job they aspire to. Many hospitals are not able to provide the precision of care necessary to avoid the highly publicized number of preventable, fatal, medical errors that occur with their patients.

Older Patients, Baby-Boomer Generation
Because hospitals are now restricting admissions to patients who need care the most, patients are now sicker than ever before. Translation? Doctors and nurses are caring for patients who need more of their attention.

There are now more older patients because of the baby-boomer generation. This increases the number of patients with multiple medical issues, who are at risk of falling out of bed and breaking bones or contracting a hospital disease that could kill them. Because of this, nurses have to pay even more attention to this patient population because they are more at risk.

Spread of Hospital - Acquired Infectious Diseases
The spread of infectious diseases (pneumonia, MRSA, etc.) has increased to shocking proportions. That means there's even more for nurses and doctors to monitor and keep track of.

Hospitals are Struggling to Survive
Hospitals today are struggling to survive in an environment where authority is in the hands of the insurance companies, rather than patients and their families. Rapid advancement in technology makes ever more expensive treatments in wide demand.
Karen Blanchard, MD, Santa Monica, CA

Hospitals are now inundated with patients who don't have insurance and who don't pay their bills. Hospitals are struggling just to keep up as well.

Doctors are Overworked
To compound the above issues, doctors are required by insurance companies to see more patients in less time. Their time is divided among patients they see in their offices, in the hospitals, and in surgeries. This is part of the reason that the role of physician's assistant is becoming so popular. Doctors just can't keep up.

Typical Family Member Story

Gail's mother was admitted to a hospital in New York. Here is what she said:

"There were horrible, life threatening holes with regard to hospital processes and procedures - mistakes with medication, delays with procedures and treatments, hospital politics regarding who got to decide which patients were treated first. There was a lack of 'team' communication between physicians, nurses, and administrators."

"Also delayed or no response to nurse call buttons, lack of attention to my mother's skin/body condition. We finally hired a private duty aide to care for her at night when we were not there."

"It is frightening to think about those patients who were not lucky enough to have family at their sides. The head nurse was particularly helpful, more so because she saw how dedicated we were. It was sad to hear that our behavior was so unusual."