Too big to leave

We had an unusual problem this week at the hospital. How would you like the problem of being too big to leave the hospital?  That's right, too big, as in obese. One of our 560lb patients was ready to be sent home, we had the special big people van lined up to take her home and everything. They used a special crane thing to get her into a special double wide wheel chair, then down she went to the van and guess what, they said "no, sorry, too big".  Suddenly the nurses were alerting our team that this patient was sitting in her wheel chair in the hallway with no where to go.  What to do? Calls were made to ambulances, fire departments... any place we could find.  As hours passed it became evident she'd have to stay at least another night while we tried to find her a ride home.  I cannot imagine the embarrassment of this for her.

It reminds me of all the other stories I've heard at the hospital about oversized individuals.  We have had patients that have needed special MRI's or CT scans. The weight limit for the machines at our hospital is 400 lbs.  There have been times these tests are so important that we have taken patients to the zoo- they have a special MRI machine for the elephants and other large animals.  Can you imagine- being towed to the zoo to get a test in a machine that elephants lie in?  I also think of the nurses at the hospital, and how it will take 6 and 7 people to help turn or clean some of these special patients. Our heaviest person, a 900lb man had to be taken home once in a semi trailer.

The next day we finally found a company with a very special truck/van that could take our patient home- they needed 900 dollars up front (wisely, for they knew otherwise they wouldn't be paid from this person who had no health insurance).  The hospital forked over the money- and she left.  How she is supposed to get to her follow up appointments with the specialists over the next few weeks is beyond me.  As they wheeled her out, 2 people working hard to push the wheelchair, I wondered at this ironic problem - being too big to leave the hospital!  Sad really.     This picture is not of this patient, but of someone similar (and only about 450)- cropped to protect identity.