At first glance, hiring a companion for a loved one during their stay in the hospital may seem odd. After all, there is a plethora of professional healthcare providers around at the hospital. Unfortunately, providers are often juggling a floor full of people and cannot be as attentive as we may need. Other people may need more attention, which can lead to less time spent with elderly patients.
According to AARP, more than a third of all seniors are lonely. In the hospital, this can be a major roadblock to care. Hospital rooms are often drab without many activities to take part in. Patients wind up with a lot of time on their hands without much to do, especially if visitors are few and far between. While this can be a great environment for someone to catch up on rest, it can actually harm others, leading to loneliness and symptoms of depression.
People who are lonely in general have a lower quality of life. Loneliness can increase the release of stress hormones in the body which, over time, negatively affect the patient’s physical health. A person’s cardiovascular system may have to work harder, which often means it’s not working quite as well. The immune system stops working as effectively, which could make someone more susceptible to hospital-acquired infections. It can also bring on cognitive decline, making it more difficult to process information. A person’s mental health can decline as well. All of this considered, people experiencing loneliness are 50 percent more likely to die sooner than their peers.
Loneliness is also related to a poor patient experience. That, in turn, is related to patient outcomes. Low satisfaction is related to having a higher likelihood of complications and infections. Unfortunately, the current nursing shortage has led to an uptick in hospital readmissions for urinary tract infections and surgical infections. The likelihood someone will catch an infection in the hospital tends to increase with age. Those infections then tend to be more detrimental to an elderly patient’s overall health.
Caregiving services in the hospital can help alleviate many of these issues.
Having dedicated companions in the hospital can reduce feelings of loneliness, anxiety and depression. Fighting off loneliness can have more benefits than eliminating the above. People who are lonely tend to have higher levels of beta-amyloid, a toxic protein, in the brain. Beta-amyloid has been linked to Alzheimer’s disease. Therefore, hospital companions could help ease symptoms of and stave off that condition.
In-hospital assistance takes on tasks that medical staff may not have time to assist with quickly, such as helping the patient eat and get to the bathroom. Often, patients have to wait a long time to get assistance to the bathroom. It can be embarrassing and difficult to be told to wait and can lead to people falling in an attempt to get to the bathroom on their own.
Many of the tasks that caregiver services take over are the ones that family members assist with during visits. However, not everyone has the ability to be there for loved ones in the hospital at all times.
Having a companion there for visits from doctors can help improve a patient’s understanding of their own condition. Companions can help break down information to help a patient understand it better. Knowing that there is back-up there for them can help people feel more comfortable sharing symptoms, pushing back against misinformation and asking questions. A companion can also help physicians understand a patient’s needs or questions better.
When family isn’t able to be there, an in-hospital assistant can take notes during rounds and keep loved ones in the know on how the patient is doing.
In-hospital assistance can also help people feel comfort at a time when nothing is comfortable. Studies have shown that patients want and need to maintain their connection to people while in the hospital. While phones can be helpful to stay connected, it might be hard to hear the person on the other end. Being able to have in-person visitors that patients can maintain eye contact with improves the ability to communicate, as well as comfort levels.
For anyone in the hospital, feeling at ease is difficult. Fighting loneliness and finding comfort can make a large difference in how a person comes through a surgery or other medical event with minimal complications. This is even more vital for people who are elderly as they’re more at risk of infections and more. Hiring a one-on-one companion is an important step to giving your loved one the best care possible.]]>
