Curtis Fabrizi, RN was taking care of a Parkinson's patient who came in to the ED because of difficulty ambulating. All of the lab tests had come back negative and the physician was going to send her home. The patient's daughter was very concerned because the patient couldn't get herself to the bathroom. Complicating things further, this patient was the primary caregiver for her husband who suffered from dementia.
Curtis made phone calls to the ALF to inquire about moving the couple to a higher level of care. He spent time talking with the patient and daughter to reassure them that we would not discharge her home if it was not safe to do so. In the end, Curtis spoke with the ED physician caring for the patient about the safety issues, and she was admitted to the hospital.