Does the hospital have any responsibility when dealing with a dementia patient?

yes they do, I would sue, my mom with dementia was taken by ambulence after a fall and admitted to the hospital, I am her daughter and poa, I did not go this time as I do not drive and could not find anyone to bring me home, after she arrived back home, I recevied a bill for 1500 dollars for meds after i had sent all her meds with her, they said they could not give her own as that would cause them liabily, i told them i would not pay that bill, i got the runaround, they said she signed that it was ok, i told them she had dementia and they knew it and knew as they had a copy of the poa, I threatned with law suit as her signature was not legal do to the dementia, so after gettting the runaround, i finally won and they wrote off the bill

Ask your attorney that question. What is morally and socially appropriate and expected may not always be legally required.

Yes, the hospital does have a responsibility and what they did was terrible. My husband has dementia and Parkinsonism. I was told that I had to stay with him in the ER while he waited for a room to be available (for 20 hours!) because the ER staff did not feel that they could ensure his safety. Once on the floor, I requested a 1:1 aide since my husband is likely to get out of bed and fall if he isn't watched constantly. The hospital was reluctant until I made it clear that they would be held legally liable if he got up and hurt himself after they had been warned of the risk. I have POA but have found that the only way to get the hospital to behave responsibly is to make it clear that I will hold them liable if they do not do everything necessary to ensure my husband's safety.

We recently had a similar experience. My mother-in-law who is eighty-four, legally blind with dementia was in need of a test in the hospital. As we entered the hospital, the wheelchairs were in disrepair. My husband (POA) escorted her to the test and was asked to wait in a specific waiting room and the test would only take 20 minutes. Well, an hour 1/2 later, he went to check and the technician said they had to take her for an additional test (without his knowledge); at this point he was okay with the additional test, however, once again he stayed longer than anticipated. When he asked the 2nd time, he was told they left her in the waiting room which was totally different. She was frightened, confused and truly distraught over the entire ordeal which was told would only take 25 minutes.

Solution for us was to write the hospital with a letter of our dissatisfaction and they replied with a letter of apology and solutions to this problem. One solution was to properly name the waiting rooms and two to repair the wheel chairs. It is not in our nature to sue someone for a misunderstanding, however, a professional response was in order. We were satisfied in knowing that hopefully we have improved a process for future patients.

Not knowing all the facts, but it sounds like hospital staff erred. Whenever there is a court-appointed attorney, patient has dementia, and it was told to staff, then a documentation of such provisions should have been charted. Call risk management at the hospital and demand to see the nurse's chart notes as to what the attorney's instructions were about releasing your mother. In any event, I am glad your mom made it home all right, but she should not be on her own. In the future, attorney for her should not leave her alone so this cannot happen again.

I feel ya quagmire. My MIL broke her hip last week and we had such a struggle with the hospital regarding her being an incapacitated person. We went to admitting -sealed guardianship in hand- and carefully explained that MIL was incapacitated and could not sign ANYTHING. Sure, sure, sure. They made a copy.

This meant nothing to anyone. We had to explain over and over to all parties that she could not sign ANYTHING. Still they tried to get her to sign the release for surgery when my husband went for coffee and I was in the rest room!

After surgery the floor charge nurse refused to give us information on MIL's potassium and creatinine numbers. Told us we didn't have POA! Can you believe it? My husband had to explain to her that his guardianship carried more weight.

You could tell she didn't believe him and she explained back to him what he really needed was MPOA.

We couldn't leave her for a moment as no one understood the meaning of incapacitated or guardianship.

It is sad to say and to think of all the thousands of elderly people who don't have a person to be their Care Giver or POA. My mother is going through the 2nd stage of dementia, at times she finds it hard to say words that she is thinking. At this time she is still very capable of living in an apartment by herself and to take care of herself. The 1st and 3rd Wednesday of each month I take her to do her errands. My husband and I three years ago hired a "Health Care Whisperer" for my mother.
Your loved one's PCP should of had your name and information on file for contacting you. What I would also like to suggest is that make you badge for your loved one with all the important contact information including meds that cause an elergic reaction. This badge should be worn at all times and one should be kept by the entry door to their home or apartment. When it comes to my mother receiving proper care in the hospital, everyone in the hospital including my mother's PCP knows we mean business. When you have a loved one regardless of their age, it is extremely important that you have legal documents stating you are that individual's POA. It is also extremely important that you have a complete list of all meds and times they are to be taking by that person. It is a general rule that a hospital will not allow a patient to provide their own meds during a stay in a hospital. It is also extremely important, if you can do so, to stay with the person 7/24 while that individual is in the hospital. When you are assigned as the POA, you do have the power to say and do what needs to be done for that patient. All the Drs., nurses, and employees don't have the right to say, "We don't have time to give your individual loved one time and care that they need. We have too many other patients who need our attention too." Nope! If you are the POA, you have every right to make sure your loved one receives proper care. Because there are so many elderly people in our world today, most businesses have become very understanding about an employee needing time off to take care of a person in the hospital. If a person doesn't have a car to take them to the hospital on emergency basis either for themself or to go to a loved one, make a phone call and have a taxi pick you up and take you there. It is a general rule that before a person checks into a hospital for medical care, the question is always asked, "Will a person be taking the patient home and staying with them during the recovery period?". Normally a hospital will not release a patient if they don't have a person to take care of them during this time. If the hospital and your loved one's PCP had all the important information to contact you or a member of the family, both of them are at fault for allowing this unfortunate situation to happen. If you covered all your steps in this matter, you do have your rights. Please take my information to heart. I take great concern for all the elderly people in our world. I hope this situation never happens to you or your loved one again. God, please help take care of this person and help guide her through the rest of her life. I speak on your behalf as a professional Care Giver for the elderly. Thank you.

My mother has dementia but it's been awhile coming. Whenever she was hospitalized, I stayed overnight and supervised that she was getting the right kind of attention. Luckily, the hospital she stayed at was accommodating in everything and also honored the POA that I have. I still have my job, however, so far my employers have been understanding with it when I had to come in later in the day. I do find that night shifts don't give the same attention because they are more prone to believing that the patient is sleeping most of the time. But patients with dementia don't think about this when they get up at night to go to the bathroom even if the patient is able to get about.

my mother has been fully conserved, both person and estate, and has a court appointed attorney to serve in that capacity. while EvaLynn Pearl's advice is very good it is not practical in our case, and the mere sight of anyone in the family sends her into an uncontrollable rage. sounds dramatic but it is true. her attorney has done many of the things listed, but my mother lives alone and when left to her own devices, hides everything she gets her hands on because of the paranoia. frontotemporal dementia is a rare form of dementia with some unique characteristics, it took 3 years to get her diagnosed. she can be very convincing that she is a victim one moment, and a raging wild person the next.
again, that you for your suggestions.

Hi Quagmire. I really feel for you going through a nightmare situation of trying to care for and protect someone who thinks of you as the enemy!! I take it she is like this with everyone....even her attorney?? How terrible, and what on earth will happen when she can't live alone anymore, and needs more help to survive? Sounds like you describe it.....a nightmare. What the hospital did in releasing her on her own is outrageous. Like many of the posts said, many of the hospitals just don't care much about the elderly person w/ dementia. They're a burden to the staff, and they want them out of there ASAP. Not only do they have to tend to the physical needs, but struggle with the patient's constant confustion, and inability to understand what's happening. I find it to be extremely aggravating. Even taking my Mom to for her opthamology appointments every month for injections to control macular degeneration is an ordeal. The staff/assistants are very impatient and abrupt with my Mom. They treat her like she's a moron, and speak curtly to her, telling her to do what they want her to do....like she should know and understand. It infuriates me, but it's the only place in town to take her for these injections. Anyway, I just wanted to say, best of luck to you now, and down the road, with the hurdles that lie in front of all of us!! But even moreso with you, I think, with your Mom's particular kind of dementia. With others, they can be with the parent, 24/7, in a hospital stay or even with scheduled test appointments. (which is absolutely necessary, otherwise it would be like leaving a two year old to fend for himself.) Believe me, no matter what you tell the hospital staff, they are too understaffed and quite honestly don't really care enough....it's NOT their loved one, and their job isn't to watch over people who can't think. So unless you hire someone to sit with your loved one all the time if you or a family member can't be there....God only knows what can occur. Sad, but totally true. Hospitals are not safe places for our dementia loved ones, but they're a necessary evil. :-/