Documentation of Rebuttal to
Discharge Summary for
Carolyn A. Hogue dated 12/25/2021
from Dr. XXXX
(names withheld for legal purposes)
After my Mom’s passing, I went on to her Mission portal to print off her medical records. I was absolutely shocked when I read the discharge summary from Dr. XXXX. Nothing he said in that summary was the truth of what happened in that hospital room the 11 days my Mom was in there. I lived in the room with my Mom for those 11 days. Never leaving except to go down the hall to use the bathroom, go to the cafeteria or to get food and clothing from my husband or sister.
My Parents and I have discussed at length THEIR wishes should anything like this happen to them so if I was speaking it was for my mother not myself! Dr. XXXX NEVER talked to us about Tocilizumab only Remdesivir (has a 55% mortality rate and has been taken off of the WHO Covid treatment list as of November 20th,2021 because of this) and Baricitinib (long list of side effects including fatigue, cough and can cause upper respiratory infection and a Black Box warning by the FDA put into effect Dec 2nd, 2022!). He told us a couple days later about Colchicine which I researched (my points of reference are the Mayo Clinic website, PDR and 2 Pharmacists). This medication has been around for a very long time so we all agreed it was worth trying. Therefore, we DID NOT refuse ALL treatments!! I also asked about Nebulizing with Budesonide and was told it would not help (it is a treatment known to help CP so why not try???) Yes my Mother could speak for herself, however, she was in a very fragile state at the time that is why I was there so that I could make sure her wishes were abided by.
I found in her medical records that on the 16th she tested positive for MRSA!! She was NEVER started on any antibiotics. Since this was in her nose it is most likely that being on High Volume oxygen would have pushed this right into her lungs causing bacterial pneumonia which can cause death if not treated!!
Around the 18th one of the nurses came in to put a red bracelet on my Mom’s wrist. When we asked what it was for she said DNR (Do Not Resuscitate!!!!) We were both shocked and told her to get that off of her. My Mom was livid!! We NEVER signed a DNR any of the times she has been at the hospital. My Mom was very healthy before this, working out 5-6 days a week walking and weight lifting…on minimal meds. My 88 year old Dad is not on any meds!! I WANT TO KNOW WHO SIGNED/AUTHORIZED THIS!
She was only on the Colchicine for about 3 days when Dr. XXXX discontinued it due to diarrhea, however, she had not had a bowel movement for 5 days at which time on 12/20 WE (Mom and I) asked for her to have a suppository. Caused a lot of cramping but she finally started going and yes that is what caused the diarrhea not necessarily the Colchicine….even so given the choice of Pneumonia or diarrhea???? Take diarrhea! I also noticed that her WBC was within normal range until the 20th!
I came across a paper in her records that shows she was given a Baricitinib treatment via mouth and pharynx on 12/20!! This was a refused treatment and, since I was in the room 99% of the time with her, this had to be given to her when nurse "A" gave her her meds...she did not go over the meds with me that time as the nurses usually do! I also noticed on the computer in the room when the nurses go over the meds that on 12/21 she was given a 4 mg tablet of Baricitinib!!! This is unacceptable treatment!!! Even if they asked my mom she was in no shape to reply since we found out on the 24th (10 days after she was admitted and this was NEVER brought to our attention) that her blood oxygen level was critically low…..on 12/24 it was 49 and the RT said that it was well below 80 when she was admitted…..well below the 80 mark which can cause numerous issues including cognitive impairment!!
Mom had about 10 pills to take in the morning. My Mom could swallow 2 small pills at a time or 1 regular size pill. Many times she was also trying to take these not fully sitting up which makes it even harder to swallow. For the first few days the nurses would let me give her her meds as I could get food in her so she would not get nauseous. She was very tired so this would take a while. She had quite a few meds ie..Tessalon Perles, Prednisone and even vitamins that would cause nausea. She would take them in order of priority….Eliquis and Fleconide first, Tessalon Perles next etc. The C vits were larger chalky pills and last priority and a few times, not many, I could not get her to eat to be able to take them. On 3 occassions I had trouble with the nurses and the meds. First time on the 20th, nurse "A" got over to Mom with her pills before I could tell her she needed to eat and take just a couple at a time. She dumped all 10 (actually 11 since she gave her the Baricitinib too) pills in her mouth and did not give her enough water!!! Mom started choking so I grabbed the cup out of the nurses hand and ran to the sink to get her more water!! Mom had a coughing spell after that, of course, and then became nauseous, obviously, so they had to give her Zofran and that knocked her out for the day. On the 22nd nurse "C" wanted to give them to her before she would eat because she said “ I can not wait around”. I got some yogurt into my Mom for the first couple pills. I had told "C" that she could only take 2 small pills or 1 regular pill but she put 3 pills in the yogurt anyway and fed Mom (one of which was cut in half so rough) . Again choking. I never did get Moms vitamins in her that day at which "C" made the comment “well they have been here since 9 am”…..I didn’t care….I could have gotten them in her later but "C" just threw them away and walked out the room. When nurse "H" was taking care of her on the 23rd….I gave my Mom her meds and made him wait 30 minutes for me to do so….I was not going to have her abused again!! Younger nurses especially need to learn patience and compassion for the older generation!!
I was my Mom’s nursing assistant for 11 days. I would let the nurses know when she needed to be changed, when her urine container needed to be emptied, etc. No one EVER came in to get her up and out of bed. I had asked for this but was told that her oxygen level would drop too low so they did not want to take a chance (knowing NOW that she was so weak from her blood ox being too low). She had gotten out of bed 4 times in 11 days to use the bedside commode.
My Mom could still roll herself over in bed which we did often because of her back surgery and her hips hurting. I would always help her because of the tubes and cords etc. Also getting her warm blankets often to make her feel as comfortable as possible. I got many thanks from most of the nurses because it made their jobs easier. I needed them to come in and help me move her up in the bed a few times a day due to the fact that she was on her side most of the time and with her back surgery the bottom part of the bed needed to be flat while the upper part was raised a bit so she would slide.
Finally, by the 24th when they brought up going on the Bipap my Mom was getting agitated (if they had brought this up in the beginning then the outcome may have been very different! but I doubt that now because of the MRSA). When the RT first came in to put it on her, she was laying on her side and kind of forced it on her making her very uncomfortable. They wanted to leave it on her for hours which was not going to work…because I KNOW MY MOTHER..they DON’T. I asked for it to be put on for 2 hours to see how she would do. She did ok for the first hour or so but started having a lot of anxiety so we had it taken off for a while. My Mom wanted to try it again because she did feel that it helped (this is exactly what she needed to realize on her own to curb her anxiety!!). While it was off, I made sure she ate so she could take her meds without getting nauseous. We spoke to RT and said we wanted to try it again for 2 hours so I had her sitting up watching TV for distraction. She watched the clock and when 2 hours came and RT did not show up I tried to explain to her that the longer she had it on the better it was for her but she became more agitated as time passed and started hyperventilating. I finally had to ring the call button to get RT in there as well as trying to not have her ripping the mask off her face!! I DID NOT DECLINE HAVING THE BIPAP…..MY MOTHER DID!! "C" from RT was witness to her panic attacks when he came into the room both times. Come to find out from my Step-Dad she is a bit claustrophobic so that coupled with the low blood oxygen and anxiety was a really bad mix.
Dr. XXXX stated that I was micromanaging my Mother’s care. Well, yes that is true and that is the patient’s right to ask questions and do their own research. As for no medical training….well he never asked. I have a background in Family Practice, Cardiology and General Surgery. My Step mother has been in the medical field for 40 years and my sister is a PT. He just did not like me!!
Two times with my Mom on IV Saline she got too much fluid so I had asked she be taken off and when she was, after a few urinations, she could breathe and her sats were back up in the 90’s. I have seen this before and although yes covid can cause fluid retention that was not the issue in this case since stopping the IV corrected the problem.
Dr. XXXX also mentioned the morphine….we told them in the ER that she can not take morphine because, as with a lot of people, it makes her very sick!!
By the time my Mom passed away on Christmas morning I had taken care of her for 11 days, barely got any sleep, barely ate and lost 10 pounds!! I hardly think anyone can say that I did not care for her as best I could and according to her wishes!!
As you can see the TRUTH about the 11 days in the hospital is far from the discharge summary written by Dr. XXXX. I would hope some of the nurses would back me up and also after reading through a lot of her medical records it is clear that he is falsifying medical records.
Robin Pickel
Health Surrogate for
Carolyn A. Hogue
Discharge Summary for
Carolyn A. Hogue dated 12/25/2021
from Dr. XXXX
(names withheld for legal purposes)
After my Mom’s passing, I went on to her Mission portal to print off her medical records. I was absolutely shocked when I read the discharge summary from Dr. XXXX. Nothing he said in that summary was the truth of what happened in that hospital room the 11 days my Mom was in there. I lived in the room with my Mom for those 11 days. Never leaving except to go down the hall to use the bathroom, go to the cafeteria or to get food and clothing from my husband or sister.
My Parents and I have discussed at length THEIR wishes should anything like this happen to them so if I was speaking it was for my mother not myself! Dr. XXXX NEVER talked to us about Tocilizumab only Remdesivir (has a 55% mortality rate and has been taken off of the WHO Covid treatment list as of November 20th,2021 because of this) and Baricitinib (long list of side effects including fatigue, cough and can cause upper respiratory infection and a Black Box warning by the FDA put into effect Dec 2nd, 2022!). He told us a couple days later about Colchicine which I researched (my points of reference are the Mayo Clinic website, PDR and 2 Pharmacists). This medication has been around for a very long time so we all agreed it was worth trying. Therefore, we DID NOT refuse ALL treatments!! I also asked about Nebulizing with Budesonide and was told it would not help (it is a treatment known to help CP so why not try???) Yes my Mother could speak for herself, however, she was in a very fragile state at the time that is why I was there so that I could make sure her wishes were abided by.
I found in her medical records that on the 16th she tested positive for MRSA!! She was NEVER started on any antibiotics. Since this was in her nose it is most likely that being on High Volume oxygen would have pushed this right into her lungs causing bacterial pneumonia which can cause death if not treated!!
Around the 18th one of the nurses came in to put a red bracelet on my Mom’s wrist. When we asked what it was for she said DNR (Do Not Resuscitate!!!!) We were both shocked and told her to get that off of her. My Mom was livid!! We NEVER signed a DNR any of the times she has been at the hospital. My Mom was very healthy before this, working out 5-6 days a week walking and weight lifting…on minimal meds. My 88 year old Dad is not on any meds!! I WANT TO KNOW WHO SIGNED/AUTHORIZED THIS!
She was only on the Colchicine for about 3 days when Dr. XXXX discontinued it due to diarrhea, however, she had not had a bowel movement for 5 days at which time on 12/20 WE (Mom and I) asked for her to have a suppository. Caused a lot of cramping but she finally started going and yes that is what caused the diarrhea not necessarily the Colchicine….even so given the choice of Pneumonia or diarrhea???? Take diarrhea! I also noticed that her WBC was within normal range until the 20th!
I came across a paper in her records that shows she was given a Baricitinib treatment via mouth and pharynx on 12/20!! This was a refused treatment and, since I was in the room 99% of the time with her, this had to be given to her when nurse "A" gave her her meds...she did not go over the meds with me that time as the nurses usually do! I also noticed on the computer in the room when the nurses go over the meds that on 12/21 she was given a 4 mg tablet of Baricitinib!!! This is unacceptable treatment!!! Even if they asked my mom she was in no shape to reply since we found out on the 24th (10 days after she was admitted and this was NEVER brought to our attention) that her blood oxygen level was critically low…..on 12/24 it was 49 and the RT said that it was well below 80 when she was admitted…..well below the 80 mark which can cause numerous issues including cognitive impairment!!
Mom had about 10 pills to take in the morning. My Mom could swallow 2 small pills at a time or 1 regular size pill. Many times she was also trying to take these not fully sitting up which makes it even harder to swallow. For the first few days the nurses would let me give her her meds as I could get food in her so she would not get nauseous. She was very tired so this would take a while. She had quite a few meds ie..Tessalon Perles, Prednisone and even vitamins that would cause nausea. She would take them in order of priority….Eliquis and Fleconide first, Tessalon Perles next etc. The C vits were larger chalky pills and last priority and a few times, not many, I could not get her to eat to be able to take them. On 3 occassions I had trouble with the nurses and the meds. First time on the 20th, nurse "A" got over to Mom with her pills before I could tell her she needed to eat and take just a couple at a time. She dumped all 10 (actually 11 since she gave her the Baricitinib too) pills in her mouth and did not give her enough water!!! Mom started choking so I grabbed the cup out of the nurses hand and ran to the sink to get her more water!! Mom had a coughing spell after that, of course, and then became nauseous, obviously, so they had to give her Zofran and that knocked her out for the day. On the 22nd nurse "C" wanted to give them to her before she would eat because she said “ I can not wait around”. I got some yogurt into my Mom for the first couple pills. I had told "C" that she could only take 2 small pills or 1 regular pill but she put 3 pills in the yogurt anyway and fed Mom (one of which was cut in half so rough) . Again choking. I never did get Moms vitamins in her that day at which "C" made the comment “well they have been here since 9 am”…..I didn’t care….I could have gotten them in her later but "C" just threw them away and walked out the room. When nurse "H" was taking care of her on the 23rd….I gave my Mom her meds and made him wait 30 minutes for me to do so….I was not going to have her abused again!! Younger nurses especially need to learn patience and compassion for the older generation!!
I was my Mom’s nursing assistant for 11 days. I would let the nurses know when she needed to be changed, when her urine container needed to be emptied, etc. No one EVER came in to get her up and out of bed. I had asked for this but was told that her oxygen level would drop too low so they did not want to take a chance (knowing NOW that she was so weak from her blood ox being too low). She had gotten out of bed 4 times in 11 days to use the bedside commode.
My Mom could still roll herself over in bed which we did often because of her back surgery and her hips hurting. I would always help her because of the tubes and cords etc. Also getting her warm blankets often to make her feel as comfortable as possible. I got many thanks from most of the nurses because it made their jobs easier. I needed them to come in and help me move her up in the bed a few times a day due to the fact that she was on her side most of the time and with her back surgery the bottom part of the bed needed to be flat while the upper part was raised a bit so she would slide.
Finally, by the 24th when they brought up going on the Bipap my Mom was getting agitated (if they had brought this up in the beginning then the outcome may have been very different! but I doubt that now because of the MRSA). When the RT first came in to put it on her, she was laying on her side and kind of forced it on her making her very uncomfortable. They wanted to leave it on her for hours which was not going to work…because I KNOW MY MOTHER..they DON’T. I asked for it to be put on for 2 hours to see how she would do. She did ok for the first hour or so but started having a lot of anxiety so we had it taken off for a while. My Mom wanted to try it again because she did feel that it helped (this is exactly what she needed to realize on her own to curb her anxiety!!). While it was off, I made sure she ate so she could take her meds without getting nauseous. We spoke to RT and said we wanted to try it again for 2 hours so I had her sitting up watching TV for distraction. She watched the clock and when 2 hours came and RT did not show up I tried to explain to her that the longer she had it on the better it was for her but she became more agitated as time passed and started hyperventilating. I finally had to ring the call button to get RT in there as well as trying to not have her ripping the mask off her face!! I DID NOT DECLINE HAVING THE BIPAP…..MY MOTHER DID!! "C" from RT was witness to her panic attacks when he came into the room both times. Come to find out from my Step-Dad she is a bit claustrophobic so that coupled with the low blood oxygen and anxiety was a really bad mix.
Dr. XXXX stated that I was micromanaging my Mother’s care. Well, yes that is true and that is the patient’s right to ask questions and do their own research. As for no medical training….well he never asked. I have a background in Family Practice, Cardiology and General Surgery. My Step mother has been in the medical field for 40 years and my sister is a PT. He just did not like me!!
Two times with my Mom on IV Saline she got too much fluid so I had asked she be taken off and when she was, after a few urinations, she could breathe and her sats were back up in the 90’s. I have seen this before and although yes covid can cause fluid retention that was not the issue in this case since stopping the IV corrected the problem.
Dr. XXXX also mentioned the morphine….we told them in the ER that she can not take morphine because, as with a lot of people, it makes her very sick!!
By the time my Mom passed away on Christmas morning I had taken care of her for 11 days, barely got any sleep, barely ate and lost 10 pounds!! I hardly think anyone can say that I did not care for her as best I could and according to her wishes!!
As you can see the TRUTH about the 11 days in the hospital is far from the discharge summary written by Dr. XXXX. I would hope some of the nurses would back me up and also after reading through a lot of her medical records it is clear that he is falsifying medical records.
Robin Pickel
Health Surrogate for
Carolyn A. Hogue