How Do You Feel About This...It Angers Me a Bit

That is so sad! I can't believe the hospital staff would tell him something, be so sure of themselves! I am a low level injury, so I have no experience with the vent issue, other issues quads face, but I remember being told I would never walk again in the first couple days after my injury. They were so sure, then, about three days later, I was standing with assistance. In the early days, I regained so much, then the infection got in my back, and much as they like to tell me, it caused damage to my spinal cord. I was initially diagnosed as an L1 burst fracture, but after the staph & strep ravaged my spine, I am T12-L2. As was posted in other posts, regular hospitals hardly know anything about SCI, bowel programs, or even bladder programs, I know from experience. I was in rehab for a month at a regular hospital, whose nurses were not trained to deal with a paraplegic. Sadly, a hospital with doctors trained to deal with SCI and all that comes with it was about a block away, in the same city. I was not informed of this, and really had no idea what had or was happening to me. I found apparelyzed (another forum) the month I stayed in a nursing home, which had no idea how to deal with me either, well, at first. I taught them well! Anyways, I feel that his life was stole from him by not being informed, by medical professionals who had no clue about his condition. They should've had someone who had experience and training talk to him.

When I got really depressed in rehab, the social worker had the leaders of the Dakota Center for Independent Living, who have been paras for 10+ years visit me. It made me re-evaluate my whole situation to see two people still happy after all they'd been through. Things like that should be done more often. Sadly, it doesn't happen.

And . . . I want to clarify one thing.  When I refer to the first responding hospitals needing to be "trained" . . . I do not mean trained in rehabilitating those with SCI.  I simply mean trained in understanding SCI and what each level of injury on the spine means with regard to function and possible outcomes in function.  Medical staff at this first response level need to know what bowel programs are, how to pad patients in the bed correctly, and what AD is and how to deal with it.  They need to understand the difference between complete and incomplete injuries and the fact that at the onset of the injury it is most likely not something they (at that level) are going to be able to determine . . . so they should NOT be telling patients what they are going to be or not be able to do for the rest of their lives.  And they need to be well versed on "next steps" for SCI patients.  There are so many great acute care rehab hospitals in this country and these should be the next steps for all SCI patients, and those first responding hospitals should be making sure patients and families are well aware of the options.  People are falling through the cracks on not getting the rehab they deserve and so much of the reasons why are due to lack of knowledge about SCI.    

I was initially in ITU in Belgium - I don't know much about the place as I was in a coma, then heavily sedated ( still managed to get out of bed, eventually had to be restrained! ). Transferred to a general hospital in UK, who decided to manage my bowels by lying me ( couldn't sit up ) across a bedpan !!!! I eventually got catheterised when I convinced them that I really was in pain because I couldn't pee properly ( they initially drained over 1 litre ) got told off for not wiping my ass ( couldn't get my arms behind me after the shoulder injuries I'd sustained ) and when they tried to make me stand ( about 6 weeks post accident) were surprised when I lost bowel control and anointed the floor !!!! Basically they hadn't a clue about spinal injury of any description.  Luckily I was transferred to a specialist spinal unit within a few days, and managed properly. My wife had been told I wouldn't walk again, but they forgot to tell me, so by the time they got round to it, I was sitting in a wheelchair buying a new bike to replace the one I'd been twatted on. It was about then they realised I wasn't going to take no for an answer, one way or another I was going to.