Uncle Albert, Very Poorly.

[Timbo]

For those wondering as to my intermittent posting of late, I've been contending with my Dad, Uncle Albert, in hospital for ten weeks. After a visit to his consultant urologist who pratted about with a catheter Dad developed an infection over night. He was admitted to Lincoln Hospital by his GP as Dad was suffering from delirium as a result of the infection. Dad stayed in hospital for two weeks, then he was discharged and sent home on the Wednesday. Thursday his GP readmitted him to hospital. Friday they sent him home again. Sunday he was readmitted to hospital, and he has been there ever since.

Eventually I dusted off my PhD and DPhil and terrorised the MD's into putting Dad onto an intravenous wide spectrum antibiotic. Whaddya know...it worked, and Dad was starting to return to his normal self. Last Tuesday he was transferred from Lincoln back to our hospital here in Gainsborough where our one and only ward specialises in rehab to get him back into his flat with his carer. However from Wednesday Dad deteriorated rapidly, once more becoming confused suffering from delirium again. Today he was ambulanced back to Lincoln as his infection 'has returned'...I don't think it was ever cured...and has now 'deteriorated to double pneumonia' according to the hospital. Double pneumonia is a hell of a feat for Uncle Albert to achieve...as he only has one lung.

This evening he was comfortable and stable and waiting to see the doctors. I will post more when I know. 

[riyadhcrew]

Hang in there Tim. We are all with you and praying for the best.

[Gracie]

Good luck, Tim and Tim's Uncle Albert

Thinking of you

Grace

[deebee29]

You are all in our thoughts Tim.

keep strong 

[ranworthbreeze]

Hello Tim,

So sorry to hear of your fathers ill health. Hospital visiting is never easy for anyone, being torn from all directions it tends to wear you down. As others have said keep strong, our thoughts are with you.

Regards

Alan

[Timbo]

Thanks for your thoughts guys. Just got off the phone with the hospital. Dad's had a comfortable night, has a lot of fluid around his lungs, and they now suspect a kidney injury. However they are now telling me they will be sending him HOME on Friday. So in two days we have gone from him being too ill to be able to stay in the rehab unit to 'let's clear the wards out for Christmas'. In a week we've gone from 'he needs specialist rehabilitation so that he can cope living at home with carers' to 'he's far to ill to attempt to implement a rehab programme' to 'he'll be home on Friday...cope'.

So I have to ring back this afternoon after ward round, but in the meantime I will have to set up his care at home again just on the off chance they send him home without the rehab he needed two weeks before Christmas. Good job I've kept his carer on retainer this last two months. 

 

[imtamping2]

Good luck Tim, I have also found in the past that sometimes the words "duty of care" spoken to the right person will have a good outcome.

[JanetAnne]

26 minutes ago, Timbo said:

 However they are now telling me they will be sending him HOME on Friday. So in two days we have gone from him being too ill to be able to stay in the rehab unit to 'let's clear the wards out for Christmas'. In a week we've gone from 'he needs specialist rehabilitation so that he can cope living at home with carers' to 'he's far to ill to attempt to implement a rehab programme' to 'he'll be home on Friday...cope'.

 

I think, if it was me, I would be sat there for ward round and saying the above to someone far enough up the food chain to realise litigation might follow?

My very best to Uncle Albert though. His escapades have made him quite a character.

[Gracie]

I only just saw on the news the other night a report about the amount of elderly people that are left in hospital because there is no alternative, they can't be sent home because of no one to care for them, I think it is such a tragedy

Please don't think that I am making light of Uncle Albert being poorly but what a lucky man to have you to come home to and care for him, Timbo, you're a star, you really are

I wish you and your family all the very best for Christmas and hope that Uncle Albert feels better soon

Grace

[Bound2Please]

With all thats gone on with Mum this year, I only to well know the feeling. She went into hospital in January having had a slight fall. They never had her out of bed in 4 weeks now cant walk a step (could walk perfectly with her frame before going in there) ... this will be her first Christmas in a residential care home.

So all the best to you Uncle Albert Tim enjoy it together.

Charlie and Wench

[Gracie]

That's the thing, I know it's mostly about the people we love that are poorly but let's spare a thought for the carers, Timbo, Charlie and our lovely Dave to name a few, what fantastic jobs they have done and are doing. I have had to rely heavily on my family over the past year or two and although they don't see it as a burden, as well as all the above and whoever else is taking the role of carer, you are unsung heroes in my book

Well done the lot of you

Grace

[jillR]

2 hours ago, imtamping2 said:

Good luck Tim, I have also found in the past that sometimes the words "duty of care" spoken to the right person will have a good outcome.

I was told that these are the people to talk to ... good luck timbo and big hugs for your dad

http://www.cqc.org.uk/

[addicted]

At one time when care fell short of what was required, (I've been up this route with 2 sets of grandparents in the 1970s) threat of exposure in local press worked wonders.  These days however they' re shameless! Hope you succeed in getting the right result.

Carole

[BrundallNavy]

Sorry to hear about your dad Tim, hopefully you mange to get someone to see sense.

Best wishes,

Doug.

[Timbo]

Here's the latest update...apparently my sense of humor is not appreciated by the NHS. I was contacted by the 'Frailty Nurse' today. That's a new one on me...and I told her so. I suppose my musing as to whether the 'nit nurse, frailty nurse and the clap nurse all share an office' may have rubbed her up the wrong way, perhaps I chimed in after they'd had an argument about who'd left what samples on the desk...or the fridge? I dunno, but the conversation rapidly went downhill when it was suggested I 'put Dad into a home for a few weeks'. Earlier in the telephone conversation the Frailty Nurse had told me she was stood at Dad's bed with the doctors. So I suggested she 'put the question to my father'. This she did and was rewarded by a string of expletives that only a Killick Stoker in the Royal Navy could formulate.

I then made a further suggestion "I know this might be a bit left of field but...have you thought about trying a f*****g cure?". Hell, she'd been cussed by Dad so an 'f bomb' from me was small potatoes. The upshot is that they will try and cure Dad's infection over Christmas. I suppose it's a step in the right direction. No wine with Christmas dinner for me then as I will be off to Lincoln to visit Dad.

 

[Timbo]

I should add I have nothing against care homes, and when the time comes it is something Dad and I have talked about and will be utilised, however what Dad needs now is treatment, he's only in his early 70's and up until a few weeks ago managed in his own home.

Part of my problem is that Dad was a social worker specialising in the elderly and an assessor of both homes and staff.He knows all the local homes inside out...and the answers to any question any social worker may ask of him!

[jillR]

if christmas dinner is anything like what they served up at the n&n when I was there ...

perhaps try and take him in something easy to digest like a good home made chicken soup, with

plenty of garlic to help with the infection ?

[Wonderwall]

Thinking about you and wishing all the best of luck and a change in fortunes. 

[addicted]

A friend of mine's husband developed mental health problems a few years ago and he had the utmost difficulty getting him help, His GP was superb but even with all his best efforts the mental health issues remained untreated eventually following an unsuccessful suicide attempt he was put on a medical ward to treat the damage done by the pills he had  taken, still no acknowledgement of the actual problem. After a few days the hospital announced they would be sending him home the next day. My friend pointed out that if they did that he would be very likely to make a further attempt on his own life  as this latest was the 4th at least. This ward is not for treatment of that type she was told. "Then put him in a ward that Is" she suggested. Not possible she was told. So she went to her solicitor and had letters drafted addressed to the hospital secretary, the doctor under whose "care" her husband  was and everybody else involved in his hospital discharge, making it quite plain that if her husband  succeeded in killing  himself or inflicted serious harm on himself during an attempt to do so she would sue them all personally along with the local health Authority. He was placed in a mental health treatment ward immediately,  and eventually recovered enough to lead a pretty normal life although the treatment was not without faults This  all happened a long time ago but it seems little has changed for the better in the meantime. Getting appropriate help for people unable to do so for themselves still seems to be a disgracefully uphill  struggle.

Carole

[NeilB]

My 84 year old mum had a fall back in April, luckily nothing broken but with bad bruising and struggled to walk.  Spent a couple of weeks in hospital and finally made it home only to fall again a few days later.  They discovered her blood pressure tablets were causing the pressure to drop too low and hence the falling over.  Another couple of weeks in hospital and back off home again and promptly fell over again !

Luckily we found her a space in a rehab unit where she spent a month getting her strength and confidence back.  One stair lift, 4 wheeled walker thing and several handrails later she is back at home and going from strength to strength.

It was certainly an eye opener dealing with the NHS, I could write pages!  The majority of the people though are fantastic and being let down by creaking infrastructure.

I hope Uncle Albert has a similar experience to my mum and makes a good recovery.

[loribear]

hi tim so sorry to hear about your uncle albert, i know it can be very stressful for both of you when you can't get things right when it comes to infections , they seem to be getting more stronger & it's harder to cure these days, hope he makes a good recovery, stay strong tim we'll all be thinking of you both . lori

[Timbo]

Thanks Lori.

Visited the old boy today and took him his presents and the copy of the NBN calendar I bought for him. He was unable to open his presents or open his eyes long enough to see them, but he did have a quick peek at the photos. The nurses asked if I could encourage him to eat and drink as the old boy is refusing food and drink, and I managed to get a cup of coffee into him, but he went back off to sleep fairly quickly. He was looking quite dapper today, washed and shaved with his hair combed...male nurse on duty had decided to suffer Dad's wrath and shave him.

I will be taking Dad's brother across to see him the day after tomorrow. What with Dad in the state he's in, Uncle Bill being blind and difficulty walking and me with the stick...it will look like a scene from the Thriller video when Bill and I descend on the hospital!

[Polly]

Thinking of you Tim, we just went through a long and difficult time with a friend suffering dementia and trying to get the hospital to listen to other issues. It wasn't happy.

Having said that, though, there were some lovely people doing their best in the circumstances.

[Timbo]

Called by hospital this morning and asked to go in ASAP. The old boy is still fighting, but some decisions had to be made. At the minute they are dealing with heart failure and kidney failure. The problem being the treatment for the heart failure will hasten the kidney failure and vice versa. Overlaying all of this is the infection which has now gone to his lung causing delirium and complicating things yet still further is Dad's diabetes.

The prognosis is not great. They can treat one but not all. But a bit like juggling, they are still trying to keep all of the balls in the air, but if one drops then they all will.

 

[deebee29]

We are thinking of you at this difficult time Tim