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Today’s article is about, “Quick Tip for Families in Intensive Care: Should My Dad with Tracheostomy and Brain Injury Go to a Specialized Rehab Facility or to LTAC (Long-Term Acute Care)?”

You may also watch this through this YouTube link https://youtu.be/QO2oFM8YuKU or you can continue reading the article below.

Quick Tip for Families in Intensive Care: Should My Dad with Tracheostomy and Brain Injury Go to a Specialized Rehab Facility or to LTAC (Long-Term Acute Care)?

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

So, today’s tip is again a question answered for one of our members for families of critically ill patients in intensive care. I’m reading out the question from our member and how we answered the question so you can see what value you get for our membership for families of critically ill patients in intensive care.

Hi Patrik and Team,

My dad’s been off all antibiotics since Sunday and they’ve done another blood count, and that they are doing a blood culture to see if nothing comes up. I’m assuming right now, his white blood cell count looks good, and he still has slight fluid in his lungs. He’s been responding more with the Passy-Muir valve and yesterday was the first day he had it in. He had it most of the day while maintaining blood oxygen levels on his own.

My concerns are he still seems sleepy throughout the day and after therapy, which he only gets one hour a day, three days a week. He does respond to us by answering our questions. But is it common that he doesn’t know how to speak well after having his tracheostomy or is it also his brain injury causing confusion? Could he still be slowly regaining consciousness too?

He isn’t completely out of his arm restraints, but they have suggested he go without them while my mom is with him. He’s scheduled to transfer sometime around the 20th of September and they’re suggesting a nursing home/LTAC that has a short-term rehabilitation program. My concern is that it is a nursing home or LTAC facility though and I don’t want them to treat him like we want him there long-term.

I did find a place that’s an in-patient rehabilitation center only and it has a respiratory section that takes tracheostomy patients. I just wondered if he would have to qualify in other areas to be able to get into a facility like that one.

Okay. So, I’m keeping names out here. Of course, I’m going to read out the response that we gave to our member.

Thank you for sharing your dad’s current progress. You mentioned that he has been off the antibiotics since Sunday, and they have done a follow up blood culture to determine if the bacteria have been effectively cleared after the course of antibiotics. We hope that he remains free from any further infections.

It’s good to know that he’s been responding more with the Passy-Muir valve, and we hope that he’s been maintaining good oxygen saturations of above 95%. You mentioned that he is sleepy throughout the day and after therapy and this may be due to a range of reasons.

His medication is potentially inducing daytime drowsiness, the poor quality of his sleep during the night, or it might be simply related to the effects of his brain injury. If this persists, it would be helpful to review his latest blood test results, particularly his ammonia levels. Additionally, checking recent blood gas results to assess carbon dioxide or CO2 levels could provide insights as well. A follow-up with the neurologist is also important to reassess his neurological status and determine any necessary adjustments to his care plan.

It is not uncommon for someone who has undergone a tracheostomy and is recovering from a brain injury to experience difficulties in speaking and cognitive function. This is the reason it’s important that he’s in regular sessions with physiotherapy, physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy, as these therapies play a crucial role in supporting his recovery journey.

Regarding the arm restraints, it’s good that the medical team has suggested removing them, especially when your mom is present. This approach might aid his comfort, mobility, and overall recovery process. Otherwise, it is important to always check for any blood circulation issues around restraints to prevent any potential negative effects and harm. Considering your dad’s complex medical situation, he meets the criteria and will benefit from the inpatient rehab center that specializes in handling patients with tracheostomy and recovering from brain injury.

It is important that he will be transferred to a facility that aligns with his specific need for his safety and recovery. You can request from the medical team that they consider transferring him there in his present state and per the family’s preference instead of an LTAC (long-term acute care). We hope this helps.

Should there be any recent progress reports available, you can send them to us so that we’ll have clinical insights based on the recent results of his blood works and any diagnostics exams done, doctors and nurses, documentation, and determine his next course of action and care plan. Please keep us updated.

So, this particular member still has their dad in ICU for many weeks. We’ve been working with this member for many weeks, walking them through issues step by step, giving them that crucial second opinion. More importantly, dealing with the negativity from the intensive care team because they’ve been telling the client and our member, “Oh, your dad is going to die”, and they’ve been negative all the way along and we always encourage our member to keep going.

And here we go a few weeks later. Now her dad is on the verge of going to another place because he can finally be discharged from intensive care. That’s what happens when you work with us. One on one, we give you a crucial second opinion. So, you don’t have to take everything for face value what the intensive care team is telling you and you get perspective from us. We employ decades and hundreds of years of ICU nursing experience in our service, and you can leverage that for your benefit.

So if you want to become a member of our membership for families of critically ill patients in intensive care, go to intensivecaresupport.org. There, you can get 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. I also offer one on one consulting and advocacy over the phone, via Skype, via Zoom, via WhatsApp, whichever medium works best for you. I talk to you; I talk to doctors and nurses directly. I ask them all the questions you haven’t even considered asking, but you need to ask in order to get peace of mind, control, power and influence so that you can make informed decisions.

I also represent you in family meetings with intensive care teams and have been doing so for dozens if not hundreds of clients over the years, getting tangible outcomes for them, getting better care and treatment for them.

We also review medical records in real time so that you can have a second opinion. And we also review medical records after intensive care if you have unanswered questions, if you need closure or if you are simply suspecting medical negligence.

Now all of that you get at intensivecarehotline.com. You can call us on one of the numbers on the top of our website or simply send us an email to support@intensivecarehotline.com.

Now, if you like my videos, subscribe to my YouTube channel for regular updates for families in intensive care. Click the like button, click the notification bell. Comment below what you want to see next or what questions and insights you have from this video and share the video with your friends and families.

Thank you so much for watching.

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

Take care for now.

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