Overcoming the anxiety of patients, their families, referring doctors, and our own clinicians and staff is another story. Patients can still be sore and in many cases don't have all their body's systems up and running after three days in the hospital, Craver points out. If the patient isn't walking well but can walk safely, the patient can go home and walk. If the patient's bowels haven't moved but there are no problems, the patient can take a laxative and go home. If there's some fever, but no other signs of infection, it can be watched at home.
Medication is prescribed to treat residual pain and soreness.
Sometimes patients are doing well but just don't want to go home, or their spouse or caregivers at home may feel imposed on and want to delay the patient's leaving the hospital. Some are surprised, some are shocked, most are elated. Mary Zellinger, EUH clinical coordinator for cardiovascular services, counsels patients before surgery and during the hospital stay and calls them at home on a regular schedule to see how they're doing and answer their questions. This postdischarge contact also has eased the strain on referring doctors who may not be accustomed to caring for open heart surgery patients. Such ongoing close contact by nurse coordinators has helped fast-track systems nationwide survive, and Emory is no exception.