Hi.
Not been on for 3 weeks due too so much going on ,Where do you start.
Since this all began we have had to keep a very close watch on medication , times its to be taken and how etc and also you watch for changes that can sometimes be missed by a consultant or gp , There have been so many mess ups with mums med's and we have even had to ask for blood test's and had to ask about mum's Phenytoin level and request that as her levels were low should it be increased and they said yes it did seem low lets raise it , and what with the speedy steroid reduction previous and the problems mum had it goes to show how observant you have to be and never be afraid to question your consultants judgment and seek advice and information from any where you can ,which is why the Macmillan site is important and anyone who can add any information on even the slightest thing can be what someone else is experiencing .
Mum has become more and more unsteady on her feet and the left side has become much weaker , so mum was doing well until last Saturday when mum had a fall and was in a lot of pain so we attended A n E where amongst the usual A n E flapping mum had an a chest xray that thankfully came back clear so we were ready to leave with advice and a leaflet on chest injuries .
Once home mum and all the family agreed that it would be best for mum to attend our local hospice ward in a small town hospital ,again another mess up . The second day of mum's stay i checked the medication record and noticed that they had administered mum's Phenytoin at 9 am and not 9 pm which is when mum has always taken it and whilst we were sitting there at 2.45 pm the nurse placed mum's steroid's down for her to take , the thing is mum has always taken her steroids at noon and no later due to medical advice and effecting sleep but any change of time with some meds can have a knock on effect ,once we voiced our concerns surprisingly we were told that mum was having too many visitors , the final straw for mum was last night when she was taken to the toilet by a male , i know that they are nursing staff etc etc but mum is a 68 yr old lady who has found it hard for us to have to toilet and shower her let alone a strange man who also stood there while she was on toilet . To cut it short mum wanted to come home and we wanted her home as we have been caring for mum for 4 months now , we were offered fast track care but it has been rejected as mum does not need care and has been offered a bed at home .
Sorry to rant on its just that until you actually experience the NHS you dont realise how bad it really is and i know that they are all doing a job but thats it , its a job if you cant do the job with some compasion then change career .
But on the other side of the NHS coin we feel that we should say how great everyone at The Oncology / Radiotherapy unit were , they always had a smile and mum got to know them well and would always have a nice chat with them . Thankyou so much to them all .
Mum has now finished her radiotherapy and is relaxing well under the circumstances , not really sleeping much its now hard to see what is the tumor or the side effects of a medication as mum'm steroids are being reduced weekly now .
We will try and get on more regular with anything that may help others .
Till next time .
