Sorry, pressed the wrong key by accident. Meant to say poor meg does seem to be having a dose of bad luck at the moment. Hope things get better. Yes my neighbour is amazing for his age,they only got back from a few days in kent before they flew to south of france and have been back a week or so and are off to london, its as if they have to pack in as much as they can now.

Congratulations to your granddaughter Bramley. Fantastic results. You must be very proud of her. What A levels is she planning to do and does she have any idea of a career?

 

Meg - so sorry to hear about your neighbour and sad that you didn't get the chance to say goodbye. How is your father-in-law?

Thanks, Nina. She is still making up her mind which path she is following.

Meg, hope things are going well with your Father-in-law.

I do hope Meg is alright.....it's been a double blow for her.

me too

My father-in-law was returned tonight. He was supposed to be here this morning. The hospital couldn't look after him. He's come back after 3days of not eating or drinking. He's been convinced he can't swollow his tablets and is now incapable of everything. Heis seeing things everywhere - doesn't want to have anything in his mouth - it's a nightmare. If you want to destgroy an old person, let them go to hospital. The ambulance men literally dumped him and ran.

 

It's Tuesday before we can get a doctor to him. If Thamesdoc had deigned to visit instead of calling back to us about an hour and a half after our call to tell us they'd decided it was an emergency and I had to call an ambulance, none of this would have happened.

 

He was abusive and awkward in the hospital but, if he had been fed and watered, he may not have been. You can't just leave a cup by someone like him, he need supervision. it's absolutly no use leaving details of what he will and wont eat if the hospital ignore it because it's not how things are done. If they had returned him to us when they realised what it was doin g to him, we'd have stood a chance as, on the Thursday lunch time, I managed to get him to take tablets and sip trea. I jnust didn't realise what was happening until. they showed me the menu they were offering him - no chance he'd touch anything on it. I didn't panic as they said he would be rweturned this morning but, a whole extra day has passed and our doctor's was closed before he arrived and we saw what state he was in. I'd never call Thames doc again.

 

We've spent the whole night up to now to try and get something down him. I just don't know what we're going to do.

Meg, phone your own doctor and ask him if he can possibly make an exception and come out to you .......explain

the circumstances.Could you try dissolving the tablets in a strongly flavoured drink, preferably one of the vitamin and food supplement ones? And try lots of physical reassurance with cuddles and talking calmly to him, or singing to him.

Would a feeding cup help? I can't think of anything else to suggest. I'm so sorry things have turned out like this.

Phone your doctor at his home.......I know our doctor wouldn't mind. Maybe he could give him a mild sedative for

a couple of days to help him settle.

The hallucinations are probably due to the infection, dehydration. Hope you managed to get some sleep and that he will calm down a bit today. What a nightmare.

It is so shocking, I can't quite believe it. How could a hospital release a 100 year old man who is obviously still very, very ill without ensuring he would get some medical attention? If they with all their professional skills can't get him to take his tablets, eat or drink, how do they expect his carer to do so.

 

My thoughts are with you, megham, and also with David.

I think it's more shocking and stupid that no-one in the medical profession listened to Meg before he was admitted and once he was taken into hospital.

I can't think of any way to help, much as I would like to. Still thinking of you both.

If D had the chance, I bet he would have been at the George Michael concert last night in London (or the one tonight,

or the final one in Copenhagen). His last concerts, unless that was a publicity stunt to sell tickets!

There is an article on BBC news about the elderly going hungry in hospitals.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7580549.stm

 

I hadn't heard of the red tray, or colour coded tray, before, but it seems a very good idea. Pity it's not

compulsory in all hospitals.

Edited August 25, 200816 yr by Bramley

I agree with you but the media would be down on the government if they suggested making anything else compulsory. The journos would puff themselves up and drone on about the Nanny State and the erosion of civil liberties and human rights.

And if two or three cases emerged of elderly people starving to death, the media would immediately form a case

for legislation over hospital feeding methods!!! Anything that is newsworthy is jumped upon.

I wonder what the position is in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland - health is a devolved issue.

No idea. I suppose it could differ from the English approach.

Well at the local residents's group, we're due a return visit from a representative from the Health Board to update us on the plans for the new superhospital in our area this winter, I might just ask him/her if a compulsory "red tray" system would be part of their plans if it isn't in operation at present.

 

 

It would be a good idea if the red tray system were used in all residential and nursing homes. A relative was

allowed to dehydrate through lack of meal-time care....she was put on a drip in the hospital. Needless to say, she never returned to that particular home.

There's absolutely no excuse for that in a care home. IMHO it's tantamount to neglect.

 

They should know all their guests as individuals and every new carer starting at the home should at least know which residents need assistance with basic things like eating and drinking.