Page 33 - Joondalup Health Campus Annual Report 2017

Ninety year old Merriwa grandmother emily Lockwood is a determined and fiercely independent woman.
So determined that once she disarmed an intruder trying to threaten her with a screw driver and hit him with it. The shocked assailant ran off down the street and wasn’t seen again.
Originally from Middlesborough in the United Kingdom, Mrs Lockwood is also well known for being caring and very active.
In fact, if she isn’t gardening or cleaning her place or someone else’s, she is usually cooking... often for others.
So it comes as no surprise that despite describing the care she received at JHC as being of a “very high standard”, Mrs Lockwood found it challenging to be confined to a hospital bed for four weeks.
Like many older patients being treated at JHC, Mrs Lockwood had a fall at home.
She had been baking her popular homemade corn beef sausages when she felt light headed.
When she went to sit down on a nearby chair, she missed the chair and landed hard on the floor fracturing her shoulder bone and cutting her forehead.
Mrs Lockwood was rushed to the JHC Emergency Department (ED) where she was triaged as ‘Category 2’ and seen within 10 minutes.
From there Mrs Lockwood, who was bleeding and suffering from severe shoulder pain, was given pain relief and had her cut attended to.
She underwent a CT scan of her neck and head and had an x-ray on her shoulder, which confirmed her son’s worst fears. Her shoulder was broken in two places.
The Care Coordination Team in the hospital’s ED flagged Mrs Lockwood for follow up with physiotherapy, occupational therapy and social work.
That night, Mrs Lockwood was transferred to the orthopaedic ward. By that stage, work was well underway building a profile on Mrs Lockwood taking into account her medical and social history.
The multidisciplinary team on the ward spent some time assessing her living arrangements and the support available to her.
“She underwent a functionality assessment, which looked at her ability to go to the toilet, wash and dress herself, and cook given her shoulder injury,” JHC occupational therapist Eloise Hannah said.
Mrs Lockwood was also assessed for risk of falls, pressure injuries and blood clots. Given the complexity of her shoulder fracture, Mrs Lockwood underwent a two and a half hour operation for a total shoulder replacement.
The surgery - performed by orthopaedic surgeon Mr Vara Munkundala - was a great success.
After her operation she was transferred to Ward D0 where she was seen daily by geriatrician, Dr Kevin Kwan, and the Aged Care and Rehabilitation Team.
The medical team optimised her perioperative care and outcome by working alongside other members of the multidisciplinary team.
Mrs Lockwood underwent daily physiotherapy, which focussed on progressing her mobility, lower limb strength and balance. “We also helped her maintain her “good” shoulder strength, range of motion and function,” physiotherapist Rachel Hall said.
OT visited Mrs Lockwood’s home before
she was discharged to assess how she functioned in this environment. Equipment was issued to decrease her risk of falling again and social work referred her to services that would enable some activities to be monitored until she is able to manage these tasks independently.
JOONDALUP HEALTH CAMPUS | ANNUAL REPORT 2016/17
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