If you've ever been to the hospital you know that discharge can be a confusing time. You're tired, still hurting, and just want to go home. Then they give you a list of instructions and your prescriptions. It can be too much to handle.
For many of our patients, it can be completely overwhelming. If you aren't fluent in English or don't have a high literacy rate, it can be dangerous.
This was the case for Bill.
Bill dropped out of school and has a second grade reading level. He was hospitalized for undiagnosed diabetes and he was sent home with two prescriptions.
That week Bill came to our Hospital Discharge Clinic. During consultation with our Director of Nursing Zara Morgan, MSN, RN-BC, she discovered that he was taking twice the prescribed dose of one of the medications.
Bill admitted that he didn't read well, so Zara came up with a plan. Using visual aids she was able to show him when and how much of each medicine he should take.
Weeks later, Bill was back for a check up and he stopped Zara in the hall. He was very excited now that he taking his medication correctly. His blood sugar had improved, he was able to go for walks again, and he had lost 12 pounds!
