Good Morning all, I have not been right since my adventure with bg’s the week before, and the day before I ended up in ER to which they kept me until this morning. First off they did cat scan thought I had a stroke, after which a neurologist can in, now check this out,
this was my Doctor a I-Robot, and its self propelled. but that’s not why I posted, when I first got there because I am a diabetic and long time insulin dependent
they decided to give me an IV for fluids with dextrose because they decided 102 was to low, I informed them I wasn’t dehydrated and that I was on a CGM and that I have to be hydrated for it to be accurate (at least for me) and that when they did finger stick my Dexcom said I was 104, showed them my 12 hour graph and never went over 125 (could not really eat. I ended up letting them give me IV after a bit of protest with doctor getting involve, So with a very short time I was 275 with 2 arrows up so I paged them and protested that this was unacceptable to which they replied it was find that they want to make sure I didn’t loose consciousness again, to which of course I responded bag was not over halfway gone and that at that rate I probable would pass out, so they went and talked to Doctor and he had them drop back the drip a lot. awhile Doctor came in and said see it wasn’t that bad your only 250 now, to which that is way higher than I as with most allow them selves to go with out taking action to correct, to which he said just let it go we want it to stay GOOD to try and help me, so I kind of went off and pulled out my O5 controller and showed him graph which showed it went to max basal as bg went strait up from 102 to over 300 and had brought it back down but back ed off around 260, it eventually got under 200, after hours. but was flabbergasted at the level of Diabetic knowledge in ER.
@T1john Sorry you went thru all that! The tech is interesting, but seems inappropriate considering the situation. I think many here on FUD and other T1 fora are shocked by the lack of knowledge exhibited by some medical personnel and hospital staff. While I give leeway based on the breadth and depth of knowledge needed to perform in these environs, too many hospitals have outdated “protocols,”with the availability of tech these days, there’s no excuse for NOT being aligned with the latest basic advice/requirements for “known” medical conditions, except in a true life-saving emergency situation. Too many “play it safe” to avoid liability and go too far in the other direction and exposing liability on that side. Your example of IV fluids is a prime example: first rule, listen to your patient, evaluate what they say, don’t depend on training you got 10-20 years ago, and balance it all with known/suspected current symptoms/facts! There are plenty of alternative fluid choices for hydration/blood volume that don’t require a dextrose drip. It’s not that tough for hospitals and docs to quickly learn about medical devices attached to a person (G6, Libre, insulin pumps, others), use them when it makes sense. I’m struck by the apparent loss of the precept of emergency responder: “Don’t be in a rush to act, you’ll make mistakes, evaluate ALL the data available and do it right the first time.” Also, and with no intent of “blaming the victim” here…after all we’ve got to be conscious, relatively functional, and capable of following through (sounds like @T1john was iffy in that regard)…we T1s and those that help, if not care, for us have to be our own strong advocates, voice what we know is right when we can, and expect/demand medical professionals stay up-to-date without being afraid to talk “with,” listen to, and learn from patients!
OK, soap box mode off….hope your recovery is complete and please ensure you provide feedback to the hospital and doctor! It’s the only way an imperfect system will improve.
@TomH Two quick things, first I did protest, very strongly, but altimantely allowed them proceed,
Already have, when in hospital I contacted my Endo and told him about this (emailed). Now the significant part is he works with the Hospital doing national assessments on patients who are admitted as diabetics. That’s how I meet him when I was.in hospital after heart attack. he came and saw me before I got out Yesterday, to get my side. He is a retired Captain from the Navy and don’t play, that’s what I appreciate about him.
@T1john Great! Glad you found a good Endo that stays knowledgeable and is apparently working to improve the issue! And thanks for speaking up and being part of what will hopefully be a solution! If your Endo had any advice on how to better interact, please let us all know.
Fun story: I was a USAF Capt on leave (time off) to see my parents in San Diego. Got real sick and called Balboa Naval Hospital to get seen. Called, ID’d myself as Capt so&so, got an appt, and was told to report to 3rd floor, Bldg 1 (Balboa’s HQ), thought it strange having grown up in SD as a Navy brat. Got to the office, ID’d myself, got strange looks all around from what were obviously senior Navy staff in uniform. An old Navy Capt Doc came out and said, “You’re not in the Navy, are you?”… Apparently, it was sick call for Navy O-6 Captains, not lowly USAF O-3 Captains! Se la, they saw me anyway!
’ TomH Yea I am ex-Navy and can see there reactions very well.
I would like to through a question out here that is somewhat connected to my issue, thought of making new post but it is tied in to two of my last posts.
Today I had my after hospitalization stay appt with my doc (PCP). Before my appointment this morning I pulled up my test reports during my stay, in my are even doctors notes are assessable through there patient portal and all my urinalysis showed I had ketones.
Now I have a very limited knowledge base of ketones, know what they are and that’s about it, even that small amount of knowledge is limited.
I have said all along that I felt my experience was related to BG event two weeks ago where I fell asleep in manual mode and played below cgm reading capabilities and above readings capabilities, each of which at extended times, 2-3+ hours for about a day and a half. Haven’t been right since, is it possible for ketones to stay in my system that long (2week s yesterday).
