[nagdu] Service Animals in Health Care Failities

[Jenine Stanley]

I used to go to a dental clinic, one of the national chains. Who knew there
were such things, right? The facility was very small, the exam
rooms/cubicals, the waiting room, etc. There was simply no space to bring a
dog back into the cubical, have it lie in a corner and allow for a dentist
and technician to be in there working. 

The staff was great about taking the dogs behind the counter. They listened
to our instructions about how to handle them. We only went this route though
when one or the other of us couldn't be there to watch the dogs in the
waiting room and no one was at home or we thought we'd be wanting to work
the dog afterward. I opted for my last few visits to just leave my dog at
home. 

We now have a new dentist with very large waiting and exam rooms who has no
problem at all having the dogs come back into the room. 

My husband and I handled hospital stays a bit differently. He was in for a
weekend stay for monitoring and since he was mobile and only had an IV line,
they had no problem with him keeping his dog with him. He and the dog were
allowed to walk around the floor but when the dog needed to go at, a staff
person had to come along. That was the policy for anyone who left the floor
though. All patients had to be accompanied by a staff person. 

I was in the same hospital for a week. I was in bed or having tests most of
the time and was blissfully under the influence of pain meds. <grin> The
staff said I could certainly have my dog if I wanted but I'd need to make
arrangements for her care in terms of taking her out. This simply meant
asking people if they'd do it, but I felt I wasn't coherent enough so my
husband just brought her to visit once. She was quite upset by the whole
experience though and I don't think she would have done well staying with
me. 

The only problem we had during either of our hospital stays was with one
doctor who was substituting on the weekend with my husband. She flat out
refused to treat him because of the dog, even when the dog was kept in
another room. She has since been dismissed from that hospital, in part
because of that incident. Otherwise, the staff has been extraordinary about
the dogs coming everywhere we've needed to be in the facility, that can be
allowed anyway. Like Tracy, I leave the dog with someone if I need an MRI or
CAT scan. My dog did lie in the far corner of the CAT scan room several
times though rather than in the technician's office. 

My Lab/Poodle was fascinated with the CAT scan machine and wanted to get
right up there to see how it worked. <grin> Swap was more concerned that I
was able to get up and off the table without him. <grin> 

One of the few places I can see truly modifying a policy or procedure for in
terms of access to medical facilities is exam rooms of an allergy
specialist. I've been to such facilities and the staff has had no problem
just allowing the dogs into regular exam rooms, but I can certainly
understand wanting to minimize the dogs' exposure to the exam room area if
there are several rooms. Use the one closest to the exit then do whatever
needs done in terms of cleaning or air purifying. If indeed that kind of
thing needs to be done. 

In my mind, a big consideration for me as to whether to fight to take my dog
into an exam area has to do with space. I know how much space my dog takes
up when lying quietly in a corner, which he prefers to do. If I can get a
sense of the exam room area, where doctors and others need to move around me
during an exam, etc., then I can make the decision as to whether to take the
dog in with me or have someone watch him in the waiting area as a
"reasonable accommodation".

Jenine Stanley
jeninems at wowway.com