Dementia Patient Freezes to Death; "No Comment" from Nursing Home
A St. Louis-area Dementia patient, Mrs. Kathleen "Kitty" Kinkel, age 77, allegedly eloped at 2am last week in freezing temperatures and was found dead outside her nursing home by Troy, IL police (a suburb of St. Louis). The nursing home told at least two local news organizations "no comment" while the tragedy was under investigation.
Once again, a health care organization assumes the post-event defensive crouch for all the world to see. Stupid. Absolutely stupid. And once again this space will use a tragic story like this to show c-suite, risk, legal, and medical professionals a better way following an adverse event that is splattered all over the media and social media. Consider the following response that could have been given to St. Louis media by the nursing home --- and still could be shared with local media and social media today:
"We are incredibly saddened by Mrs. Kinkel's death. She was loved by so many people, including her family and our staff. We are trying to understand what happened, and we are cooperating with the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Kinkel family during the review process. We want to provide answers quickly to the Kinkel family and help them with their grief process. We are also working to help our staff deal with their own grief and emotions. However, until the review is complete, we ask everyone to withhold judgment and avoid hurtful comments on social media directed at our staff or the Kinkel family. Instead, keep the Kinkel family and our staff in your prayers and thoughts during this difficult time. Thank you."
This is publicly appropriate empathy. It's also an example of leadership, which is what families always want -- especially post-event -- from healthcare organizations. Most importantly, this quote fits with the values espoused by this nursing home in their website and promotional videos. I challenge any lawyer or claims professional to suggest that the quote above attributes any admission or guilt to the organization -- it doesn't. The quote is empathy, but it's also plain old decency and common sense, which is so often lacking post-event.
Earlier this week Sorry Works! released an online disclosure/CRP training program for healthcare professionals, including senior living/LTC organizations. This training course helps LTC organizations deal with tragedies such as this in an empathetic and intelligent fashion. Monthly or annual subscriptions are available so all staff, from leadership to front-line clinical team members, can be trained. Here is the link to learn more and subscribe.
Sincerely,
- Doug
Doug Wojcieszak, MA, MS
President and Founder
Sorry Works!
618-559-8168 (direct dial)
doug@sorryworks.net