recently two of my pts in a hospital outpt setting were discharged by their consultants with the plan to 'continue with physio management'. The problem for my supervisor and i was that we were not achieving gains with physio (the pts had platued for a number of reasons) and we were considering sending them back to the consultant for review of their condition as it was becoming apparent that interventions other than physio might be needed. The consultants, however, seemed to 'get in first' and handball / discharge them to physio for continued management, stating that there was nothing further they were able to do for the pt.
What happens in this situation when both parties decide they are unable to appropriately manage the pt and feel other involvement is needed?? with one pt i wrote a letter to the consultant (with the guidance of my supervisor) stating the reasons we thought he needed a follow up and why discharging him to physio was inappropriate. My supervisor dealt with the other pt as it was an ongoing issue. Has anyone else come across this situation in a hospital setting where different departments refer pts back and forth? Is there a 'higher power' in this type of situation that decide whats best for the pt? or do the departments need to compromise and come to an agreement on a course of treatment?
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Hi Em,
I have similar experience, i had referred the patient back to consultant.I wrote a letter back to the consultant and explained the situation to him (I listed the treatment my patient received and stated that there was no improvement after physio session). At the same time,i explained to my patient and suggested them to go back to their consultant for further investigation.
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