advertisement
Reply
Thread Tools Display Modes
Virginiaham
Junior Member
Virginiaham has no updates.
 
Member Since: Feb 2018
Location: Maryland
Posts: 13
5 yr Member
2 hugs
given
Default Feb 13, 2018 at 02:49 PM
  #1
So I've been hospitalized 4 times in my life (twice at 16 and twice recently as an adult). I, like most people I've talked to, have NEVER found these facilities helpful and instead feel like they often ignore patient concerns, talk down to you, spend little to no time explaining your meds / potential side effects and generally just DON'T CARE about the patients' well-being.

Two of these hospitals had the nastiest psychiatrists I've ever had the displeasure of meeting- doctors who were mean to the patients AND staff which was just bizarre. And even the doctors who were nice enough people would just order new meds without telling you ANYTHING, and spend like a maximum of 10 minutes with you.

Of course there are exceptions and I have had a few nice nurses or social workers talk to me when they saw me upset, and who I felt like actually gave a s*** about their patients, and I do realize that psych wards are 1000x better than they used to be. But overall, these places seem to be full of people who view it as just another job and the patients as a burden.

This young girl was so frustrated by her treatment at the last hospital I was in that she tried to call a patient advocate but they didn't call back. She felt like she was having a reaction to her meds and that no one was listening...

I suppose the most obvious way to improve psych wards would be to increase funding that is so often cut by our legislators. But other than that (since that's unlikely to change anytime soon), what do you guys think could be done to actually improve these places?
Virginiaham is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Hugs from:
*Laurie*, BeesWaxCrayon, HD7970GHZ, MeXoXO, mote.of.soul
 
Thanks for this!
BeesWaxCrayon, HD7970GHZ, pachyderm

advertisement
Anonymous40413
Guest
Anonymous40413 has no updates. Edit
 
Posts: n/a
Default Feb 13, 2018 at 05:39 PM
  #2
The seclusion room is not a staff member. If you send someone to seclusion because you can't [won't] spare one person to stay with them, the patient is not the problem: the staff-to-patient ratio is.
  Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Hugs from:
MeXoXO
 
Thanks for this!
*Laurie*, BeesWaxCrayon, mote.of.soul, pachyderm
cool09
Poohbah
cool09 has no updates.
 
Member Since: Feb 2012
Location: Eastern MD
Posts: 1,471
10 yr Member
17 hugs
given
PC PoohBah!
Default Mar 12, 2018 at 04:46 PM
  #3
Better doctors. I just got out of Sheppard Pratt and had a decent doctor for once.

__________________
I know why you wanna hate me! Cause hate is all the world has seen lately! - Limp Bizkit
cool09 is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Hugs from:
MeXoXO
 
Thanks for this!
*Laurie*, BeesWaxCrayon, mote.of.soul
MeXoXO
Member
MeXoXO Confused
 
Member Since: Jul 2017
Location: London
Posts: 97
5 yr Member
181 hugs
given
Default Mar 19, 2018 at 05:38 PM
  #4
Doctors that listen to you , not the ones that over medicate you .
MeXoXO is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Thanks for this!
*Laurie*, BeesWaxCrayon, SybilMarie
Anonymous55397
Guest
Anonymous55397 has no updates. Edit
 
Posts: n/a
Default Mar 19, 2018 at 06:12 PM
  #5
I think having a room with exercise equipment, like treadmills and exercise bikes, would be good. Exercise is such a wonderful tool to use, and yet so few people use it. In the hospital I go to, there is only one exercise bike, and in one TV room there is a Wii which provides some movement. There are walking groups and groups where you can go to a gymnasium nearby to play games like basketball/floor hockey. I think these are all good things to have.

I also think groups are important to have as well, like meditation groups, art groups, etc.

Boredom is a huge problem in psych hospitals, which does not pair well with depression and other mental illnesses!
  Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Hugs from:
MeXoXO
 
Thanks for this!
*Laurie*, MeXoXO, mote.of.soul, Nix, SybilMarie
Carmina
Poohbah
 
Carmina's Avatar
Carmina has no updates.
 
Member Since: Sep 2017
Location: A Growlery in the UK
Posts: 1,158
5 yr Member
129 hugs
given
Default Mar 19, 2018 at 06:36 PM
  #6
Where to begin...?
Carmina is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Hugs from:
*Laurie*, MeXoXO
 
Thanks for this!
*Laurie*, BeesWaxCrayon, roadartist
Rive1976
Grand Poohbah
 
Rive1976's Avatar
Rive1976 has no updates.
 
Member Since: Mar 2018
Location: USA
Posts: 1,740
5 yr Member
144 hugs
given
Default Mar 20, 2018 at 01:49 PM
  #7
Actually having sessions with counselors while in there would help make sure you het on the right meds other than them just spending a couple of minutes with you and pumping you full of crap.
Rive1976 is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Thanks for this!
*Laurie*, mote.of.soul
cool09
Poohbah
cool09 has no updates.
 
Member Since: Feb 2012
Location: Eastern MD
Posts: 1,471
10 yr Member
17 hugs
given
PC PoohBah!
Default Mar 20, 2018 at 02:35 PM
  #8
How about nurses who work with the patients. Johns Hopkins had exceptional nurses for the most part. They checked in with you thoroughly every shift. The Dr. and residents there are a completely different story.

__________________
I know why you wanna hate me! Cause hate is all the world has seen lately! - Limp Bizkit
cool09 is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Thanks for this!
*Laurie*
Esmme
Member
 
Esmme's Avatar
Esmme has no updates.
 
Member Since: Mar 2018
Location: California
Posts: 167
5 yr Member
6 hugs
given
Default Mar 21, 2018 at 12:28 AM
  #9
I think being able to listen to our own music would be very helpful... Maybe allowing things like iPods and providing wireless headphones.

Hospitals are already expensive as ****, so I'm sure they could afford some cheap wireless headphones for people to use.

I Also feel like having access to a gym would be helpful, especially for those who stay longer than a week.

Having windows that we could open would be nice, too. People need fresh air.
Esmme is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Thanks for this!
mote.of.soul, roadartist, SybilMarie
Anonymous45829
Guest
Anonymous45829 has no updates. Edit
 
Posts: n/a
Default May 12, 2018 at 10:07 AM
  #10
Like all hospitals, this sums it up.

What do you think would IMPROVE psych hospitals?
  Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Thanks for this!
mote.of.soul, pachyderm
Nammu
Crone
 
Nammu's Avatar
Nammu has no updates.
 
Member Since: May 2010
Location: Some where between my inner mind and the solar system.
Posts: 70,968 (SuperPoster!)
10 yr Member
53.4k hugs
given
PC PoohBah!
Default May 12, 2018 at 11:39 AM
  #11
Having a whole lot more psych hospital s so there is competition. As it is now there's not nearly enough beds so no matter how bad a hospital is it will get filled cause there's no choice.

__________________
Nammu
…Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. …...
Desiderata Max Ehrmann



Nammu is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Thanks for this!
BeesWaxCrayon, kecanoe, mote.of.soul
yagr
Poohbah
yagr has no updates.
 
Member Since: Nov 2015
Location: spokane
Posts: 1,459
8 yr Member
1,121 hugs
given
Default May 14, 2018 at 12:19 AM
  #12
Rotate staff from patient centered to administrative and back again regularly.

I am a firm believer that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. In prisons, they are finally not able to ignore it any longer, guards who work in special management units are beginning to be rotated out every two years because there is simply too much data supporting the fact that the longer they are there, the more they dehumanize the inmates and become sadistic. Similar studies show the same situation with police officers. But it doesn't stop there.

Even in the helping professions - places like nursing homes and daycare centers, studies have shown that the higher the average number of employment years of staff, the more complaints both civil and criminal are brought to bear on the company. No one, or at least very, very few people, go to work at either of these places so they can be abusive.

But all of these jobs require people to be in charge of people - and people who tend to be needier than the average person. Caretaker burnout is real. Unless the people working there can disconnect from that stress and still support themselves and their families, that burnout is going to be reflected in their behavior.

__________________
My gummy-bear died. My unicorn ran away. My imaginary friend got kidnapped. The voices in my head aren't talking to me. Oh no, I'm going sane!
yagr is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Thanks for this!
BeesWaxCrayon, mote.of.soul, Nammu, pachyderm
Mountaindewed
Legendary Wise Elder
 
Mountaindewed's Avatar
Mountaindewed NoahsArk30
 
Member Since: Jun 2016
Location: Where the sidewalk ends
Posts: 35,834 (SuperPoster!)
5 yr Member
8,652 hugs
given
PC PoohBah!
Default Aug 01, 2018 at 06:54 PM
  #13
I’d relax greatly if this one hospital closed. I think I saw the staff that hit me. At my job. The second I saw her it registered. My first and only thought at the time was “ugh.” Again I haven’t been there in 11 years. It may or may not have been her. But it did look an awful lot like her.

That was a children’s psych hospital until a few years ago. It terrifies me. I don’t think I’ll ever need inpatient again, since it’s been so long. But if you are sent involuntarily can you at least choose the hospital you want to go to?

I know my mom would never send me back there. But I don’t know about the counselor. Do they listen when you tell them you were abused by both the staff and the kids? I mean, those staff regularly told the kids to go after me. I was attacked 4 times by the patients and hit once by the staff.
Mountaindewed is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Hugs from:
BeesWaxCrayon
LiteraryLark
Crowned "The Good Witch"
 
LiteraryLark's Avatar
LiteraryLark is healing
 
Member Since: Jun 2009
Location: Wonderland
Posts: 11,535 (SuperPoster!)
10 yr Member
1,318 hugs
given
PC PoohBah!
Default Aug 26, 2018 at 02:18 PM
  #14
Personally, my experience would have been better if women had women staff and men had men staff permitted in bedrooms.
LiteraryLark is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Thanks for this!
BeesWaxCrayon
kecanoe
Grand Magnate
kecanoe has no updates.
 
Member Since: Aug 2008
Location: Illinois, USA
Posts: 3,052
15 yr Member
7,192 hugs
given
PC PoohBah!
Default Aug 30, 2018 at 09:41 PM
  #15
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mountaindewed View Post
I’d relax greatly if this one hospital closed. I think I saw the staff that hit me. At my job. The second I saw her it registered. My first and only thought at the time was “ugh.” Again I haven’t been there in 11 years. It may or may not have been her. But it did look an awful lot like her.

That was a children’s psych hospital until a few years ago. It terrifies me. I don’t think I’ll ever need inpatient again, since it’s been so long. But if you are sent involuntarily can you at least choose the hospital you want to go to?

I know my mom would never send me back there. But I don’t know about the counselor. Do they listen when you tell them you were abused by both the staff and the kids? I mean, those staff regularly told the kids to go after me. I was attacked 4 times by the patients and hit once by the staff.

If sent involuntarily, you will likely go to the place that has the first open bed. If you want to choose, best to go voluntarily.
kecanoe is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Thanks for this!
BeesWaxCrayon
BeesWaxCrayon
Member
 
BeesWaxCrayon's Avatar
BeesWaxCrayon has no updates.
 
Member Since: Sep 2018
Location: USA
Posts: 36
5 yr Member
21 hugs
given
Default Oct 04, 2018 at 10:47 PM
  #16
I think all workers should have mandatory inpatient one week stay- see what it’s like. Then maybe things would change. When they go back to being a holes they get to go in for two weeks.

__________________
BeesWaxCrayon - looking for other broken crayons from the Waldorf School system.
BeesWaxCrayon is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Thanks for this!
kecanoe, SybilMarie
Katieissweet
Member
 
Katieissweet's Avatar
Katieissweet has no updates.
 
Member Since: Nov 2013
Location: Home
Posts: 398
10 yr Member
42 hugs
given
Default Oct 08, 2018 at 09:11 PM
  #17
There should be long term wards,I do much better in hospital,a lot better and don’t feel safe outside.I am happy with my hospital experiences but I live in Australia where it’s free and I usually stay months.I wish everyday there were cheaper to run long term wards like the old asylums.A lot of schiz don’t last on the outside and end up homeless etc.Id only have more funding for art therapy and art supplies,we had so little funding for that we had to reuse already painted on canvases.

__________________
Those who could not hear the music,thought the dancer was mad - proverb
Katieissweet is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
ColdSlumber
Member
ColdSlumber has no updates.
 
Member Since: Oct 2018
Location: Pennsylvania
Posts: 32
5 yr Member
5 hugs
given
Default Nov 02, 2018 at 06:16 PM
  #18
Ugh, a lot of things. I've been hospitalized a total of three times. The first place I went to was good, but the second place, no bueno. I like the one idea that workers should be pretend inmates for a certain period of time. Give some character- and empathy-building time.

Let us go outside! Ffs even prison inmates get to see the sun. I could see the gym equipment being a health hazard, but the last one I wentto had literally nothing in the form of exercise. We could walk around in circles around the nurse's station, that's it.

Music. Maybe have a room or something that has Pandora hooked up to the speakers where you could build a playlist of something other than elevator music.

And most importantly, maybe a couple rooms with one bed. My first hospitalization I couldn't tell up from down, it was 3 am, and I was certain the guy across from me was gonna kill me. He wasn't, I was just in psychosis. But I ended up attacking him. I would've felt much more comfortable in my own room not having to sleep three feet away from someone I didn't know. Would've been safer for him as well, since I was actually the dangerous one.
ColdSlumber is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Thanks for this!
BeesWaxCrayon
BeesWaxCrayon
Member
 
BeesWaxCrayon's Avatar
BeesWaxCrayon has no updates.
 
Member Since: Sep 2018
Location: USA
Posts: 36
5 yr Member
21 hugs
given
Default Nov 03, 2018 at 02:04 AM
  #19
Quote:
Originally Posted by scaredandconfused View Post
I think having a room with exercise equipment, like treadmills and exercise bikes, would be good. Exercise is such a wonderful tool to use, and yet so few people use it. In the hospital I go to, there is only one exercise bike, and in one TV room there is a Wii which provides some movement. There are walking groups and groups where you can go to a gymnasium nearby to play games like basketball/floor hockey. I think these are all good things to have.

I also think groups are important to have as well, like meditation groups, art groups, etc.

Boredom is a huge problem in psych hospitals, which does not pair well with depression and other mental illnesses!
I have been in one with a gym and that stuff. It was nice. Made up for the crappy docs. (who were taking meds themselves)

__________________
BeesWaxCrayon - looking for other broken crayons from the Waldorf School system.
BeesWaxCrayon is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
BeesWaxCrayon
Member
 
BeesWaxCrayon's Avatar
BeesWaxCrayon has no updates.
 
Member Since: Sep 2018
Location: USA
Posts: 36
5 yr Member
21 hugs
given
Default Nov 03, 2018 at 02:11 AM
  #20
I had to go to one like a week ago? They said I couldn't be there. I was out of control and I knew it but because I wasn't sui and didn't want to hurt others and wasn't psychotic I couldn't be there. I argued with them and totally lost my s***. They agreed to keep me only the night. But then refused me my full meds. I take benzos and part of my wack out was withdrawal. They said they don't like to give them and I should go home because I was upsetting ppl and I could take my benzos. They would have furthered the withdrawal withholding them from me the next morning too. I left.
Then they ask Are you safe? Will you be safe? Can you drive?
Like seriously? Why do you care?!

__________________
BeesWaxCrayon - looking for other broken crayons from the Waldorf School system.
BeesWaxCrayon is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Hugs from:
kecanoe
All times are GMT -5. The time now is 03:53 AM.
Powered by vBulletin® — Copyright © 2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.



 

My Support Forums

My Support Forums is the online community that was originally begun as the Psych Central Forums in 2001. It now runs as an independent self-help support group community for mental health, personality, and psychological issues and is overseen by a group of dedicated, caring volunteers from around the world.

 

Helplines and Lifelines

The material on this site is for informational purposes only, and is not a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment provided by a qualified health care provider.

Always consult your doctor or mental health professional before trying anything you read here.