My Gma (91, Alzheimer's) fell today for the 1st time in 8yrs of me being her CG.
It was a slow braced fall I caught the tail end of it but was too late. She was shaken up by the fall, but she was very close to her chair. I got her in her chair, when I did she was relieved. She can stand up but not walk, she does have pain in her hip. I've been icing & heating all day. I can changed her Diaper if she stands. So I think I'm gonna keep her in her chair tonight and me sleep on the couch. But what do I do? Shes not in pain by sitting but is in pain if I ask her to take a step or if I flex that leg. How do I know if it's bad enough to take her in? The Hospital is just as risky right now 😭
I'm asking this here because I see the falls are pretty common and I'm hoping I'm taking it out of proportion. Please Have Kindness 😭
She made it through surgery and is healing in a 2 week rehab. So far she is doing great. I dropped the ball on this I should have called immediately. But Thank God he kept her safe through all of this so far.
Please pray for her Recovery 🙏🏼🕊💗
Can you send her to the ER via ambulance? Sounds like there definately could be a fracture especially at her age.
With falls we really have no choice but to call 911.
My 40 year career was in Imaging btw.
if her hip is broken - she may need particular help and assistance to be comfortable while healing properly.
x-rays may be necessary to determine this. Check with her primary care physician.
if you want to avoid the hospital, you may be able to take her to her PCP and go to an outpatient radiology facility.
in an abundance of caution, however, your PCP will probably direct you to an emergency room.
if she has a fracture that needs to be set, she could heal improperly without treatment.
This happened to my Mom and the paramedic told her it wasn’t fractured or she wouldn’t be able to walk. Good thing I wasn’t there when it happened. I would have had a few words to say to him.
My Mom did indeed have a fracture and had to have a rod implanted to fix it.
Your Mom may have just bruised her hip but an X-ray is an easy non-invasive way to find out.
i agree number1daughter.
jewledmom77, we also worried about hospital/corona, but we also decided on x-ray after fall. in our case, the person was lucky, it was a hairline fracture (can heal naturally).
in your case (jewledmom77), she has trouble taking a step, flexing. she should immediately get an x-ray. it may very well be broken. if not taken care of, she might never walk again.
we had another LO (also fell during pandemic), couldn’t stand/take a step. went for x-ray. operated, new hip. after many weeks physio, could walk again. without operation, would never have walked again, bedridden (bedridden leads to fast death. doctor said, must operate hip; must save walking ability).
hug. courage.
Another's friends Mom complained for weeks about pain in her hip. Turns out her husband had kneed her in his sleep and broke her hip! The elderly are so fragile, it’s better to get it checked ASAP than let it go and have an injury worsen.
to everyone here on this website, and to jewledmom77. i hope your grandmother gets well soon, too!
Just an example of what I just went through 2 weeks ago. My mom fell out of bed and cut her ear deeply. We called paramedics because my mom can hardly get down the 2 sets of stairs. They agreed that it needs stitches. They would not transport her. They have to keep their ambulances free for covid patients and life and death scenarios. They suggested a walk in clinic. So got mom down the stairs and she her legs gave out in the grass. I had to pick her up by myself and get her in the car. Got to walk in clinic and the PA came out, looked at her ear and said it was too complicated for them to fix. They said go to ER. So many people in pain from one thing or another waiting in the waiting room for hours!! We waited 4 hours before being called back for just an assessment and BP check. Then back to the waiting room. It was 11:30 pm before we got out of there. I couldn't go back with her. The whole thing was horrible. They glued her ear shut instead of stitches and did a CT of the brain. So, if there is any way possible, don't go to the ER!!! Try a walk in clinic or her Dr first!!!!!
How are things? How did the surgery go?
Mare sure nothing is broken.
It could just be sore and bruised.
BUT, better to be safe than sorry.
How is she doing this morning. Don't think about bringing her home, she needs rehab to gain strength so she can come back home in a few weeks. It will be hard on her, but that is what is best for her.
Good on you for getting your grandma some medical attention.
I called 911 this morning & she was transported to Kaiser. They determined she did fracture her hip.😭
She is having surgery in the morning.
Please keep her in your Prayers.
My mom had vascular dementia and fell once again in the house. This was in April 2020, so the emts were afraid to bring her to the er because of the Covid risk, and just got her back into bed.
After about two days of watching her languish in bed, refuse almost all food and drink, I went in and demanded I call an ambulance and have her evaluated. They said she had a uti and vascular dementia and after a too short time in the hospital on iv antibiotics.... She was transferred to a snf for "REHAB"......... SHE NEVER IMPROVED AS FAR AS BEING BEDRIDDEN AND INCONTINENT........ BUT THAT'S ANOTHER STORY........... I THINK YOUR LO NEEDS MEDICAL EVALALUATION ASAP!
The staff at the hospital does everything they can to isolate those that may have symptoms but things can happen. But it is more important that your grandma be seen and properly treated.
IF she broke her hip she most likely will not walk again unless it is treated. And the life expectancy of an untreated hip fracture is about 12 months or fewer
Also if there is a break there is a very good possibility that this was a BREAK and FALL not a FALL and BREAK.
Many times the hip will break causing the fall not the other way around.
You must remember that just because Covid is still around doesn't mean that we are to ignore our/others health issues, as that can only make things worse.
And if there is a next time that she falls, please call 911, and they will come out to not only pick her up, but will also asses her in the home. If they feel there is no need to transport her to the hospital there is no charge. Only if they have to transport her, will there be.
I hope she will be ok, and you will have wisdom and discernment as to what to do for her.