Hi all I hope you don’t mind me posting but I would be really interested in the opinions of people who are or could be in a similar situation as my mum was.
My mum was diagnosed with an incurable regional recurrance of breast cancer last year and went on to develop skin mets. She was having chemotherapy but was pretty well, living a good life, working full time etc.
She was admitted to hospital in January with shortness of breath and was treated for a pulmonary embolism. A few days later she was discharged home, readmitted a few days later with the same and died very suddenly 3 days later.
Now we have several aspects of care we are unhappy with (understatement!) and are pursuing this with the hospital. One of the major issues we have is that at 6.40 am mums condition deteriorated suddenly and rapidly, she was returned to bed, Dr took bloods, and she was declared dead at 0800hrs. No medical intervention was given and no CPR was performed. In the medical notes the Dr wrote “in view of metastatic cancer not for resus or ITU” My problems are that while a post mortem did reveal mets none had been diagnosed at this time, he seems to have mistaken advanced breast Ca for metastatic. The other issue I have is that just because you have this illness should you automatically not be for critical care in an emergency situation. My mum had an active body(although a little slower) and mind, this was not discussed with her ever and a Dr has made assumptions.
My worry is that Drs may view patients as an illness, not a person. So I would like to you know how you feel about this, if you were in mums position what would you have wanted? Also if you would want emergency critical care and are admitted to hospital maybe it would be worth stating this?
Sorry to intrude, I really hope you don’t mind.
Best wishes to you all.
First let me express my condolences for the loss of your mum. I can understand how you must be feeling having lost her, along with the uncertainty surrounding the circumstances of her death.
My intial reaction to reading your post is one of utter horror. It seems as if a doctor has taken it solely upon him/herself to decide that there should be no attempt at resuscitation based on a phenomenal misunderstanding of cancer terminology.
Surely this is gross negligence?
This doctor must be made to answer why he made these assumptions - and errors.
Why was there a post mortem? Did you ask for it? There must have been a question mark over the cause of your mother’s death for them to have conducted it.
Your mother’s case opens up some alarming areas of concern.
Unless stipulated through discussion with the patient or their family resus and critical care should be a right for all patients.
I have a friend who is very ill with AIDS. He has been “brought back from the dead” quite a few times due to pneumonia and heart problems. At no point has it been suggested that he should be denied critical care just because he is terminally ill. He will be the one who gets to decide when enough is enough - not some doctor.
I think you may have a very strong case here - maybe you should have a chat with a medical neglience barrister.
All the best.
Hi,
I am also very sorry that your mum has passed away. My heart goes out to you at this time to have be going through all of this.
I can only echo what msmolly has said. I think this opens a whole can of worms and I hope you are able to get a good solicitor to act for you.
There is something not right and I hope they can give you the answers.
Thinking of you at this very sad and difficult time.
Love Debsxxx
Hello Sadnet
I am with the other ladies on this one, no one had the right to assume what your Mum would have wanted. I would ask for this to be investigated, it isn’t right.
Something that may or may not apply to you, but many years ago, my children/hubby got food poisoning on holiday and I was able to use my legal expenses cover on my house insurance to take the holiday company to court. I think I had £50k worth of legal cover. Check out your house insurance to see if you have it too. (sorry if that seems a bit random!)
Take time to grieve for Mum and don’t let this get in the way
of remembering all the good times.
Take care…Daisy xx
Thank you so much for replying, it helps to know I’m not over reacting!
I have spoken to the case manager at a medical negligence practice and am waiting to hear if they think there is a case to answer. I have studied the resus guidelines and it says that drs should not involve their own opinions of living with a particular illness or disability, which is what I feel has happened. Before I had my 4th child I was a nurse for 10 years and to be honest prior to coming onto these forums I did not know how long or what full lives people could lead with secondary cancer. However I knew I did not know everything and would not have made such a decision about someones life.
They did a post mortem because they had no idea the cause of death, which also indicates that they should have attempted to treat her during that final hour.
Sometimes friends say what you want to hear, reading your responses has spurred me on to get answers and an apology at the very least. I would like to know that hospital staff will receive more education with regards to treating people who have cancer, particularly that which is incurable.
I would hate for this to happen to anyone else and for that reason I will continue with my complaint.
Best wishes.
Hi Sadnet,
So sorry about your mum. Your post fills me with absolute horror. My mum has incurable lung cancer but she is managing it with treatment and has no symptoms from the tumour. We fully expect her to get a few more good years. I would hate to think she would be treated the way you mum seems to have been. Sometimes people need to get angry enough to make change happen. Good luck pursuing those responsible. Hopefully you will get some action and then be able to spend some time grieving for your mum.
Jan
I am also very sorry for your loss, and the circumstances Sadnet.
I agree with the others, and your Mums case sounds very like mine, incurable local, happy with life right now and getting on with things including still working full time during chemo and coping with all that cancer throws at me. The thought of my getting sick with something in this way, going into hospital and being allowed to die, when in all other ways I have so much to do and live, fills me with total horror.
We have a terminal condition, we are not dead woman walking with no right to have the medical proffession fight for our lives just as hard as we are fighting for it.
I cannot advise to take it further or not, that is your choice (although in your position I would give them hell) but my opinion is this was a very very wrong decision.
Hugs
Nikki
Hullo Sadnet
we to are going through similar disagreements with the hospital. My sister was diagnosed in April last year and never got any tests until the beginning of June, and she went into hospital at the end of June and had a masectomy. She then went to see her surgeon and his oncologist and he reccomended a course of chemo for which she signed.She also had tests done on her heart to make sure that she was capable of having this chemo and they all proved fine. She was told she would have to go to Canterbury for her chemo as Ashfords William Harvey hospital did not do her kind of chemo.
When she went to Canterbury she was refused the very chemo that she had signed for by the resident Oncologist there.The oncologist just loked at the scar and told her to come back in January of this year and just dismissed what my sister was saying that she wanted the treatment that she had signed for. By the time January came around my sis ter had developed more tumours on the other side and after another long 4month wait she eventually had another masectomy and yet again refused the chemo.
I took her to a hospital in London where i live and they inturn got intouch with Oncollogists ant Barts Hospital who inturn made an apponitment with another Oncologist in Maidstone nearer to where she lives. This Oncologist has gave my sister palliative care chemo as she now has tumours in her liver and abdomen, none of which she would of had if she had been given the treatment she so deserved 15months ago.
I believe my sister was given Futile Care and that means when a doctor decides when your time to die is near. She had in my opinion no right to refuse my sister chemo she had no right to play god with my sisters life. My sister has now put in a complaint and is taking legal advice which i suppose her children will carry on if and when the time comes that my sister is no longer able.
I wish you well in your quest for justice and can understand your anger. Some people think more about how much they can save the Trust and not enough about the patient.
sorry if i have waffled but once i start thinking about what could of been done and what wasn’t done i go off on another angry journey
maryelle…
Thank you all for your advice and really kind words.
I am most definitely going to follow this up and take it as far as is necessary for me to feel that the hospital regard it as a serious problem,which they do not seem to as yet.
Nikki, you have really hit the nail on the head, you all should expect the medical profession to fight as hard for your lives as you are and, as msmolly says, patients should be the ones to decide when enough is enough.
maryelle I wish you and your sister luck with your complaint and hope you get some satisfactory answers, we all need to be able to trust the medical profession.
I will continue reading these forums, they have provided me with such knowledge and insight over the past 18 months while mum was ill and offer me a strange kind of comfort now she is gone…not really sure why.
Thanks again x
Hi sadnet
So sorry to hear about your mum. What happened ot her is appalling and it sounds to me that you have grounds for a serious complaint.
I have investigated the whole issue of rescusitation because I want to make a living will. Hospitals should always rescucitate unless they are sure what the wishes of the patient are. I have had discussions with my palliative care doctor about my rights under the Mental Capacity Act 2005…patients have the right to refuse rescucitation and I would in certain citcumastnaces. In an emergency when the wishes of the patient are not known then doctors should always attempt resucitation.
This must be such a hard time for you.
Jane
Thanks Jane, as I said it is good to know others agree with my outrage. I have contacted a solicitor who is reviewing the case and requested a meeting with the staff involved, which is my next step according to the hospital, although none of them are obliged to attend!
The chief exec has told me they “probably did not attempt resuscitation as it would most likely have been futile”
My response to him was that resuscitation is mostly futile, but that does not mean it should not be attempted, it all sounds a bit wishy washy to me.
Thanks for your help.
Best wishes to you all.