When Your John Doe Is Homeless

The patient, known only as John Doe, was difficult to see under the hodgepodge of tubing, the quiet clicking of the ventilator the room's only sound.

From all appearances he was homeless, but in the opinion of his nurse, who has had vast experience in dealing with patients just like him, everyone has a mother or a father, a son or a daughter, and homeless or not, it's a nurse's responsibility to do what he can to help find them. Usually it's just a matter of taking that extra few minutes to connect the dots. "Homeless people are very savvy and self-sufficient when it comes to survival skills," he explains. "They write important phone numbers on the insides of a hat, put them in their shoes, or sew numbers inside the seams of their coats. I go through every stitch of clothing."

If that doesn't turn up any emergency contact numbers or personal information, he examines the patient's body for needle tracks, scars or tattoos and if necessary, sends fingerprints to the police for a background check.

Sometimes the police's theory is that the homeless person had a desire to be a loner, and they see no need to reconnect them with their family after they are injured or dead. But the nurse is quick to disagree.

"Things change, [and] these people are still human beings. I believe that every homeless person is still a father or mother, [or a] son or daughter to somebody out there. These people may have done things they are not proud of, they may have mental illness, but their family has a right to know what happened to them."

From a hospital's perspective, a patient without an identity is a patient without funding. But once a nurse or a social worker positively IDs a patient as a US citizen, the hospital can help the patient apply for Medicaid and then get reimbursement for the bill.

"Identifying people is a reasonable endeavor. It is part of a holistic approach. When you locate family, you find a surrogate to speak on behalf of the patient, to be an advocate. The family should decide on the patient's follow-up and if the patient has died, the family should decide where they are buried."

For tools you and your staff can use to identify John Does download a free copy of the Seven Steps to Successful Notification System, in PDF format, at the Next of Kin Education Project web site. Along with the Information Kit, you'll find patient chart pages and notification worksheets using the Seven Steps, that you can purchase and customize to use as part of your own charting system. You'll find them on the NOKEP web site along with reminder products like mouse pads, posters and coffee mugs, to keep the Seven Steps at your staff's fingertips.

Laura Greenwald, CEO/The Next of Kin Education Project nokepinfokit@juno.com

The Seven Steps Information Kit can be downloaded free of charge at http://clik.to/7steps The Reminder Products can be purchased at our NOKEP store http://www.cafeshops.com/7steps

---

Online Pharmacies and the FDA

The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) is responsible for overseeing... Read More

Can You Always Trust Your Dentists Recommendations?

Can you always trust your dentists' recommendations? Think for yourself... Read More

Diagnosis and Treatments of Cerebral Palsy

Before a child can be appropriately diagnosed with cerebral palsy,... Read More

Serevent Side Effects Put Serevent in Top 5 Most Dangerous Drugs

Serevent is an asthma inhalation medication, a bronchodilator, that relaxes... Read More

Lunesta Tolerance

Lunesta is a newly released sleeping pill. Marketed as a... Read More

Phentermine Diet Pills: When Diet and Exercise Arent Enough To Help You Lose Weight

Have you been struggling to lose weight, but diet and... Read More

Zyprexa Side Effects are Deadly: Effects Include NMS

Zyprexa is a prescription drug that treats schizophrenia, acute mania... Read More

Low Blood Pressure ? Why is Your Blood Pressure Low?

Why is your blood pressure low?As a doctor with an... Read More

To Buy Pain Meds Online, a Dangerous Move

Many people want to buy pain meds online simply because... Read More

Facial Pain: When a Nerve Is a Live Wire

Of all the places in the body that can hurt,... Read More

Family Healthcare: The Dangers Of A Heart Attack & How To Avoid It

A heart attack happens when the blood supply to part... Read More

Generic Drug: Its Pros and Cons

A generic drug can be defined as an identical, or... Read More

?Do you suffer from Osteoarthritis? Here?s how to tell!?

The most common type of arthritis is osteoarthritis (OA). This... Read More

?Foot Pain Relief At Last!?

"As an arthritis specialist, one area that I see people... Read More

Root Canal Therapy: Frequently Asked Questions

OverviewA diseased or injured nerve use to mean that you... Read More

Parasites In Your Colon

Your colon is a place for other parasites and organisms... Read More

Vioxx and Bextra Lawsuits Could Tie Up Courts for Years

In September, 2004, pharmaceutical giant Merck voluntarily withdrew its painkilling... Read More

How To Locate An Alcohol Rehabilitation Center In California

Alcohol rehab in California refers to the centers that help... Read More

Bextra Withdrawal Could Be Just the Beginning for Pfizer

The pharmaceutical industry is a tremendously profitable one, as anyone... Read More

7 Tips to Immediately Reduce Rotator Cuff Pain

1. Support the affected arm during activities of daily living.... Read More

Chronic Headaches and Pain Often Can Be Eliminated By A Special Dentist

DENVER ? Sometimes as Freud once said a good cigar... Read More

Lunesta Side Effects

Before you decide to buy Lunesta, make sure you have... Read More

Food for Thought

Depression is a disorder marked by sadness, low energy, impaired... Read More

New Antidepressant Developments and Approvals

New antidepressant development, until fairly recently, was at best a... Read More

Propulsid Litigation Lawyer Says: Unnecessary Drug Killed 80 People

Propulsid was a popular nighttime heartburn drug before it was... Read More

New Company Helps Another Medical Condition Become: ?Acceptable? Dinner Conversation

Recently once taboo subjects like plastic surgery have become acceptable... Read More

Rezulin Liver Failure Causes FDA to Recall Drug

Rezulin, a prescription type 2 diabetes drug has been withdrawn... Read More

rX My Heart and Hope to Die

This must be a mistake! How could his drug costs... Read More

The Trouble with Tranqs

There's a whole group of drugs out there called benzodiazepines.They... Read More

Molluscum Contagiosum Virus (MCV) Treatment Information - But First, What Is Molluscum?

Molluscum contagiosum treatment is certainly possible with the correct treatment... Read More

How You Can Erase Low Back Pain Using the Latest Medical Techniques!

"If you're one the nine out of ten adults in... Read More

Meridia Lawyer: Meridia Diet Pill Side Effects

Following the recall of Fen-Phen and Redux in 1999 (two... Read More

A Very Medical Miracle

Madeline Mann once weighed less can a can of soda... Read More