The patient I'm going to blog about I didn't get to meet. (This is a patient from phys. dys. FW) All I saw was her medical, OT and PT charts. She is a 42 yof, married with a 2-year-old. There was an incident where she jumped/fell into a 4 ft. deep pool. She suffered an incomplete SCI and a broken back. Her charts noted that she is currently on Zoloft and Wellbutren, narcotic pain killers (pill and patch form) and other medications specific to her SCI. Her chart noted that she has been a no show to multiple appointments. On the 25th she was scheduled to come in for a functional evaluation. This evaluation was scheduled to last 4 hours, she didn't show up or answer the phone when my supervisor called her. I couldn't figure out why someone just wouldn't show up to an appointment, at least not without calling to reschedule. Later on that day we had a man who was dragged in by his parents. He didn't want OT, he didn't want to do anything. He was suffering from severe depression. It then occurred to me that maybe it was her depression that was keeping her from coming to her appointments. She has severe depression due to the fact that she cannot care for her child the way that she would like to be able to.
At first I was annoyed that she didn't show up b/c if left me with 4 hours to kill wandering around and observing PT sessions but after coming to this realization I had a change of heart. I felt strong empathy for this woman. A lot of us in this class are mothers. Could you imagine not being able to do the things you want to with your child? Or not even being able to care for them the way you want to? That is probably the worst feeling in the whole wide world.
The charts stated that she had received disability papers while she was in acute rehab. Those papers cannot be completed without this evaluation that she missed. I'm sure that disability would help with the financial stress that her disability has caused. Then another possibility for her not showing up popped into my head. Maybe she had a fear that her child could be taken from her. Maybe she is thinking that if the eval shows that she meets the requirements for disability then she is too disabled to provide quality care for her child. It wouldn't be the first time that a disabled mom lost custody of her child.
I feel so much for this woman. She is in what probably feels like a no-win situation. All I can do it hope that she has a strong support system and someone to share her feelings with.
The internet has made it so easy for people all over the world connect with each other. These are links to on-line support groups for mom's with physical disabilities: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=30111267180#!/group.php?gid=30111267180&v=wall; http://www.circleofmoms.com/stay-at-home-moms/disabled-moms-585913
Double click my title to find a link of a video where disabled mothers talk about their struggles and successes.
Here is a additional youtube video of a mom who uses her feet to care for her child. She is truly amazing! She has other videos on her of her doing other tasks with her feet. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AmBOCkfbDG0&feature=related
It is so easy to judge and get frustrated at a client for not showing up (especially if it is repeatedly). I think it is great how you were able to take a step back and really think about the client and what she may be going through.
ReplyDeleteI love your honesty. It is so easy to get caught up in ourselves and how things affect us, but when you sit down and think about it, you see clearly. Empathy is easy for me in this situation as well. I can imagine how difficut dealing with a SCI injury would be, then add children and you are dealing with a whole new ballgame. I just heard a story on Good Morning America about a mother who suffered an aneurysm during the birth of her triplits. She is in bad shape. The kids are now three and she wants some time with them, but the father is trying to make sure this doesn't happen. It has become a legal issue now, but just thinking about the situation makes me exhasted. The children, the mother, the father, the lawyers, good grief!!
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