STAT News – Biotech
Opinion: Emergency departments are not equipped to help patients with dementia
I recently spent a long afternoon hiding from the nurse in the emergency room of a prestigious hospital. My sister and I were there with my mother, who has dementia, and the staff reminded us several times that only one caregiver at a time is allowed.
But that wouldn’t have worked for my mother. The sights and sounds in the hallway overwhelmed her limited cognitive capacity, and she repeatedly got up to leave.