Autism Speaks Official Blog

Haldol sucks. So does Palomar Hospital. And so do most hospitals when it comes to caring for severely autistic population. This week, Jan, 2011, Palomar Hospital of Escondido California left severely autistic young adult in hosptial bed, punching self while one attending staff watched “COPS.” Consequently, patient suffered numerous lacerations to hand. Despite lacerations, several RN’s failed to do wound care, despite patient JUST recovering from staph infection from self inflicted bites, last month. At another point: Father had arrived to check on son, when he found another “sitter” wathching “Cops” while autistic son punching face inside a Posey bed (a bed with netting around it that prohibits patient from getting out of bed to walk). Let’s back up for a second: When patient first arrived to ER room he was given Haldol (though listed on med sheet as allergic to haldol) for self injurious behavior, to which he later suffered oculogyric crisis (retrocollis–head drawn back, locked, frozen neck, drooling, tongue protruding, eyes rolled back, general muscle rigidity, wrist flexion, extension of lower limbs, etc…) Patient was then left in dangerous stage for HOURS while “sitter” and assigned RN, failed to notice signs and symptoms of adverse reaction to psychotropic previously given earlier by ER doc and then again, by RN, in IC unit. Not until mother came to check on autistic son was action taken to treat. Mother apparently went beserk after immediately spotting signs and symptoms. Demanded cogentin be given to reverse adverse effects of Haldol. Nurses rushed in, called a medical emergency team to treat, and even then, still tried to downplay situation, pretending that they just thought this was “the way he always acted”, despite having seen him NOT acting this way upon arrival. Upon investigation, it was discovered sitter and assigned RN were oblivious to signs and symptoms of NMS, and not even looking for them, despite pt. given a known drug that causes neuroleptic malignant syndrome. RN claimed, “he hadn’t been walking all day..” “had been just lying back watching TV.” Apparently, the fact patient is very ambulatory and obessed with walking, as was witnessed upon arrival to hospital ER, didn’t clue the clueless RN in, to dramatic difference in behavior. Nor did she consider fact patient suddenly stopped humming, walking and remained in a fixed, rigid, head drawn back, eyes rolled back, drooling state, gurgling, would be strong evidence patient presenting with signs and symptoms of adverse reaction. Scary. If that wasn’t enough, another nurse, upon being questioned about WHY hospital staff would allow an autistic patient to be neglected like this, said, “well, he’s autistic, isn’t that what they do.” When mother asked, “what do you mean that’s what they do?” Nurse replied, “they just do odd things like that.” Yes, apparently, this brilliant nurse figured all autistics just lay prostrate in hospital beds, tongues wagging, head tilted backwards, eyes rolling around in head and neck frozen, as just, well, being autistic. So much for autism awareness. This disgraceful Hospital is Palomar Medical Center in Escondido, California. It’s in the public’s best interest to call or write this hospital, and demand better care of autistic patients. Abuse and neglect of an autistic person’s medical needs is just criminal. And yet we find the attitude of people like this: According to mom of this aforementioned autistic person, when she first arrived to ER, the doctor looked at her son in disgust as he was hitting his legs and asked, “Well, what do you want me to do about this?” The mom was there because her son was suffering from 2 days of non stop head hitting and screaming, and was in some kind of pain and since he was non verbal, there was no way to tell, without medical investigation. There must be more advanced tests to help non verbal self injurious or/and aggressive patients. It’s just stupid to subject these patients and their families to substandard conventional run of the mill we don’t know what to do bull over and over and over and over again. It’s just one big cycle of confusion and fiasco in a fragmented healthcare system not equipped, despite billions spent on autism awareness and education–to deal with severely autistic patients. We can do better folks. C’mon now.