Fear

Niagara Health System, St. Catharines, Ontario

To him who is in fear everything rustles? - Sophocles

I spent 12 ½ hours in a tiny hospital room with a client who broke their left ankle in three spots and dislocated it. I am sure you are thinking what is so hard about that.

Well let me tell you…my client has an Acquired Brain Injury, blind, behavioural and delusional. Don't get me wrong I work with this person all the time and totally understand their limits, but I had to deal with medical personal; example : the nurse grab their arm to give them a needle, this scared them, they screamed “Who the Fuck are you? Are you a cunt with ear or just a pair of Dick Lips?”. Now I am used to this language and always verbally redirect them but the Nurse wanted to try and reason with them. Let me tell you this doesn't work… not one bit. The nurse told them to face towards the window and I would have to remind them that he is blind. Finally, the nurses would say things like don't you remember what we told you the last time you got up from your bed. I again would have to say they have a brain injury and don't remember what you said 10 seconds ago how do you expect them to remember what you told them last time.

Really, It boggles the mind when a doctor asks them you can’t remember how you broke you ankle? Did you hit your head when you fell, and then he turned to me and said did they hit their head? I just look at him and was silent, took a breathe and said don’t you remember that they have am acquired brain injury? The doctor just looks at me dumbfounded.

So, I guess my long and crazy day wasn't just the client but it was the Medical Staff at the Niagara Health System.