This afternoon Anthony and I had a case conference with one of the registered nurses (RN) at the nursing home. This kind of interview is done from time to time (I think it’s annually) so that residents and/or relatives can provide feedback about everything from the quality of meals to the aesthetics of the room to the drug regime etc.
Obviously the quality of care is paramount so I just pointed out that if the television is on, Ants can’t focus on the job of walking to the shower despite two helpers, because the noise of the TV confuses his senses. I also wanted it noted that he hallucinates; that he asks me for panadol regularly but, due to his verbal difficulties now, and dementia, and that farmer stoicism, would never ask for pain relief from anybody except me.
Anthony didn’t really understand what was going on but the RN and I continued to try to include him. I was sitting on the left arm of his armchair and the RN was facing us. She wrote everything down and conversed with us as a couple as much as she could but when it came to hospitalisation I said no.
The last question on the case conference form was palliative. I think this is now a standard question and I think I have been asked this same question on numerous occasions over the nearly four years that Anthony has been in the nursing home. I still haven’t provided an answer.
But today, when that question was asked, I cried a little bit, quite openly, and the beautiful RN, cried a little bit too when Anthony said:
“You’re crying because you’re under more undue stress than usual.”
jmgoyder 