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Hi it’s Patrik Hutzel from www.intensivecareathome.com.au where we help long-term ventilated Adults& Children with Tracheostomy to improve their Quality of life and where we also help hospitals and Intensive Care Units to save money and resources, whilst providing Quality Care!
In last week’s blog I wrote about “How to better manage limited resources in Intensive Care!” You can check out the blog by clicking on this link here.
In this week’s blog I want to talk about “Why INTENSIVE CARE AT HOME is NOT killing a “sacred cow” by offering home care services!”
Many people who haven’t worked with ventilated Adults& Children with Tracheostomy in their own home are still sceptical when it comes to home care as a genuine alternative to a long-term stay in Intensive Care.
I can see where people and their scepticism are coming from and I was sceptical myself before I actually got my “hands wet” so to speak and before I actually worked in the “trenches” in an Intensive Home Care environment.
The reality is that once you’ve seen what’s possible at Home even for long-term Intensive Care Patients, you will shake your head in disbelief and you will ask yourself why those ventilated Adults& Children with Tracheostomy had to stay in Intensive Care for such a long time in the first place, because once those Patients are at home, their psychological condition, their well being and their Quality of Life is just so much better!
And that’s no surprise to anyone who knows and understands how depressed, apathetic and frustrated long-term ventilated Adults& Children with Tracheostomy in Intensive Care are. Take those Patients home and you will find a marked difference in their psychological and emotional well being that makes for a better and an improved Quality of life!
Frustrated Patients and their Families
The same applies for Families. The longer their loved one stays in Intensive Care, the more frustrated, impatient and depressed Families get as well. Those Families’ Quality of Life is suffering as well. Let alone other issues they are dealing with such as the long times they are spending in Intensive Care, the lack of control they are experiencing over their and their loved one’s lives. They often end up taking paid or unpaid time of work and they still wind up not having enough time to look after other Family members such as their children and/or elderly parents.
It’s therefore that other countries such as Germany, Austria and Switzerland have long embraced those issues and have provided a HOLISTIC solution that provides win-win situations for Patients, their Families and Hospitals. It’s a “no-brainer” solution and has proven to work for more than 15 years in those countries.
INTENSIVE CARE AT HOME provides a similar, tailor made solution and hones in exactly where long-term ventilated Adults& Children with Tracheostomy, their Families and Intensive Care Units get stuck. The point where long-term ventilated Adults or Children are stuck in Intensive Care because of their ventilator dependency is a point where depression, frustration and desperation sets in and often Intensive Care Units, despite their medical expertise are unable to provide the care that those Patients really need, which is a Patient and Family friendly Home Care environment.
It is therefore that INTENSIVE CARE AT HOME is not killing a “sacred cow”, because this model of care has proven to be successful a long time ago!
What are your thoughts on killing “scared cows” in Intensive Care? What do you think is the best solution for long-term ventilated Adults& Children with Tracheostomy? Leave your comments on the blog.
Please also note that INTENSIVE CARE AT HOME has been selected as a preferred provider for Queensland Health Services as part of the recent “Hospital in the Home” tender.
If you want to discuss your needs for your Intensive Care Unit, feel free to give me a call on 041 094 2230.
This is Patrik Hutzel from www.intensivecareathome.com.au and I’ll see you again in another update next week.