Emergencies in Care Facilities

I recently had a client who was sent to hospital at 10:00 on Saturday night.The staff left a message on my answering service, but I did not get it till the next day. They did not call the family, who were second and third on the call list. I was outraged--the woman has a severe dementia, and would have been totally confused and anxious in a strange environment, especially one in which there is a high level of stimulation such as an emergency room.I found after doing a survey of other care facilities, that this is not an unusual policy.

I understand that for some occurences the care staff will only call the first contact and leave a message, but for something like a transfer to hospital, i do not think a message left on an answering service is sufficient.

I said to the Nursing Director at the home where this happened, "If it was your mother being sent to hospital, and they phoned you and you weren't home, would you want them to call someone else? Would you want your mother brought to emergency by herself?"

To be fair, she did tell me that the ambulance personnel had to stay with her until she was treated. So that made things a bit better. But sufficient? I don' think so.