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My husband, Jon, & I are having a discussion these days around whether my father-in-law should continue his radiation or not. My father-in-law is 89 yo and has skin cancer. He has completed almost two weeks of radiation therapy. On one day he says,” the radiation is difficult because I have to lay on a hard table but I feel better when it is over”. The very next day, my father-in-law says that he does not want any life sustaining measures taken and is not interested in continuing the radiation treatments. It is hard to know what to do since it seems that he is not thinking clearly. Really what is the point of radiation on a man of his age? We have decided to consult a geriatric specialist as well as an oncologist for further evaluation. In the meantime NO MORE RADIATION APPOINTMENTS!
Julie Nell
/ January 26, 2011My 80 yr.old mother was recently in the hospital, for pneumonia. She doesn’t
want an life saving measures to be taken, but I was a little surprised when the
Dr. called me to ask if he should give her antibiotics. You really have to spell it
out.
Another surprise was when my mother’s Assisted living facility left it upto the
hospital as to where she was going to live. For a few days, she didn’t have a home.
I didn’t realize that it was the hospital’s responsibility to assess where she should go.
Julie Nell
/ January 26, 2011My 80 yr.old mother was recently in the hospital, for pneumonia. She doesn’t
want an life saving measures to be taken, but I was a little surprised when the
Dr. called me to ask if he should give her antibiotics. You really have to spell it
out.
Heather Mundell
/ January 26, 2011Hi, I just discovered your blog via Twitter and I’m really appreciating all of these posts. I think what you’re going through resonates with MANY people, and I’d like to spread the word about the blog and get more people headed over here.
While my own parents are younger and are not needing me (yet) in the ways that you’re dealing with, I think that it’s good for me to be aware of the common issues facing families with aging parents. So I appreciate your honesty and humor in these posts!