IT’S INCONCEIVABLE, BUT ACCIDENTS DO HAPPEN

AND THEY CAN HAPPEN TO THOSE YOU LOVE…

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) defines a “pre-existing” condition as “any medical condition that a person has before being enrolled in an insurance plan.” There are an infinite number of pre-existing conditions which may be aggravated as a result of an accident injury, such as arthritis, fibromyalgia, pregnancy, diabetes, obesity and or depression.

Here’s what the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American College of Emergency Physicians say you need to know about emergency treatment for accident victims with preexisting conditions:

The physical responses seen in younger patients to “shock” incurred from an accident may not be seen in the older patients due to medications and preexisting conditions.

Pain, which can be manifested as delirium in older adults, should be optimally managed by balancing the need for relief and functional improvement with the potential for adverse events.

A complete medication history, including use of prescription and non-prescription medications (herbal supplements, etc.), should be obtained and assessed for possible adverse effects and interactions. Commonly prescribed medications in older adults (e.g., beta-blockers, calcium channel blockers) can mask or blunt the normal physiologic response to injury and stress or, in some cases (e.g., warfarin), may exacerbate an individual’s injuries.

Delirium is not uncommon, and it may be due to medications (including prescription and non-prescription), infections (e.g., pneumonia, urosepsis), or many other medical conditions, including: acute blood loss, electrolyte imbalance, end organ failure, hypoglycemia or hyperglycemia, hypoxia, arrhythmias, neurological conditions, dehydration, severe pain, immobility, sleep deprivation, fecal impaction, or urinary retention. During initial assessment evaluation, patients with delirium should be assumed to have a reversible etiology until it is proven otherwise. Unrecognized dementia is a risk factor for post-operative delirium.

Decreased hearing and visual impairment are common in older adults. These conditions need to be evaluated as contributing factors in patients with altered consciousness or cognitive change.

Family members should be queried regarding existing advanced directives, and health professionals should assist family members in understanding how these directives relate to the specifics of medical care.

It is smarter to have a Code Amber Alertag and not need it, then to need it and have one.

Code Amber Allertag