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Hi, it’s Patrik Hutzel from intensivecarehotline.com with another quick tip for families in intensive care.

Today is again, it’s probably a testimonial if anything, of a client that we worked with recently. So, the story went as follows that one of our client’s father went into ICU after COVID pneumonia and ended up in ICU on a ventilator initially not with a tracheostomy just with a breathing tube. There was a complete white-out on the chest X-ray. As soon as the client’s father was in ICU, the ICU was trying to push Do Not Resuscitate (DNR), withdrawing treatment saying that, “Any treatment would be futile and that it’s not “in the best interest” of the patient to survive.”

So, the family reached out to us, and I do remember first speaking to the daughter of the patient and I remember she could not realize what I was saying. I don’t think she believed with a single word that I was saying that I believe we could turn this situation around and make sure that her dad gets the best care and treatment to get him through this and that ICUs have their own agendas. They want to free up bed as quickly as possible. They think that her father won’t have any quality of life if he’s going to survive that.

Then, I explained to them how to remove the DNR and they did that. In case you are wondering how to remove a DNR, it’s definitely possible. Then things went from bad to worse in terms of her father, then ended up with a bowel perforation, and needed emergency surgery.

He then went into septic shock, and again, the whole doom and gloom started all over again saying, “Well, we shouldn’t operate on this man and it’s not in his best interest. If he does survive surgery, he won’t have any quality of life. It will take ages for him to wake up and get out of ICU, if he ever makes it out of ICU.” Again, the doom and gloom got worse.

And again, we advised the family that if they wanted surgery, they should go for it. Of course, there are no guarantees. But one thing was for sure with perforated bowels and septic shock, he would have passed away there and then if they had left it untreated.

So then, when he finally got out of the surgery and he slowly woke up, ICU was trying to push for a tracheostomy and then, do a Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy (PEG) and send him to Long Term Acute Care (LTAC) as quickly as possible. Then again, we advised not to rush that and see whether this man could be extubated within sort of the Day 10 to Day 14 mark so that he could avoid LTAC and go home, which was the sole wish of the family was to go home.

So, the other thing after the bowel perforation and they had to resect part of the bowels, he could not get any nasogastric tube feeds. They were basically trying to withhold feeds until we again educated the family on the option of TPN also known as Total Parental Nutrition, also known as IV (intravenous) nutrition.

Again, ICU was telling the family that TPN would not be recommended because the patient could end up with an infection. Well, yes, he could end up with an infection but in the meantime, he’s not getting any nutrition. If you’re not getting any nutrition during a critical illness, you’re basically starving someone to death. There is enough research out there that no nutrition in ICU doesn’t lead to good outcomes. So, in the end, he had TPN. In the end, he did get extubated. They avoided the tracheostomy. After many weeks in ICU, but also then on the hospital floor, he went home. It was a long battle. No question about it.

But again, it all came down to that families in intensive care, they don’t know what they don’t know. They don’t know what to look for. They don’t know what questions to ask. Certainly, they don’t know their rights and they don’t know how to manage doctors and nurses in intensive care.

And again, also in this situation, once again, ICU teams don’t even tell you half of the story. When the patient’s daughter first contacted me, I know she didn’t believe anything that I said, but I know we turned it all around for her and I’m going to read out her email in a minute so you can see what she says. So, that’s the story in a nutshell.

We have turned so many situations around in intensive care simply by telling families what to expect, what to do, and what questions to ask. We are involved in the advocacy. We talk to doctors and nurses directly. We look at medical records and give a second opinion so that you and your family can turn things around.

So, this is the testimonial from the client.

“Hi Patrik and team,

I hope you’re well.

My father is doing as good as possible right now. The past weekend made one month since he’s been home! We’ve changed his diet and medications back to whole foods and natural supplements. Thankfully, we have had no issues with the PEG tube so far. He’s even started to eat and drink very small amounts of fruit and water when he feels up to it.

He’s currently receiving physical therapy, chiropractor, and hyperbaric oxygen therapies. His mental status has improved slightly. We understand from all that are working with him that this will be a slow recovery but there is hope.

My family and myself cannot thank each of you enough for all the knowledge, guidance, and time you all gave us during the fight for his life. We are forever grateful.

As always, thank you so much.

Talk to you soon.

From Meli.”

So, thanks Meli for sharing that feedback with us and I do believe it was your dad’s fight for his life. It was your fight for your life because I remember when you first called me, you were at such a low point. I know you didn’t believe me initially that we could turn this around and that’s understandable. The ICU team gave you all the doom and doom. They gave you all the negativity. I understand how daunting that can be.

Anyway, you’ve made it through. Your dad is at home, which was your biggest wish at the time. We helped you with that and that is such amazing news.

Now, if you have a loved one in intensive care in a similar situation where you feel like there’s no hope, there is always hope you just need the right advice and the right guidance. So, if you need help, go to intensivecarehotline.com. Call us on one of the numbers on the top of our website or simply send us an email to [email protected].

Also, have a look at our membership for families in intensive care at intensivecaresupport.org. There, you have access to me and my team, 24 hours a day, in a membership area and via email and we answer all questions, intensive care related. This client, Meli, was part of our membership and she got great outcomes for that.

Now, if you need a medical record review, please contact us as well. We review medical records in real time so that you can have a second opinion in real time. We also review medical records after intensive care if you have unanswered questions, if you need closure, or if you simply if you are simply suspecting medical negligence.

Subscribe to my YouTube channel for regular updates for families in intensive care, click the like button, click the notification bell, share the video with your friends and families, and comment below what you would like to see next and what questions and insights you have from this video.

Thanks for watching.

This is Patrik Hutzel from intensivecarehotline.com and I’ll talk to you in a few days.

Take care.

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