Hi Everyone
Sorry to bother you all but I am looking for some perspective. I think a timeline of events is probably best which I will detail in a moment, however I would like to provide some context.
Early Feb my dad was experiencing a bloated tummy and dark urine. He went to the doctors was told it was indegestion but they offered him an ultrasound which would take a number of weeks to come through. In the meantime he ended up going jaundice so was rushed in for a CT scan. My parents received a call on Feb 4th to say he needed to go in for a biopsy as there was something in his liver and a shadow around his stomach on the scan. I instantly moved back to help them for what I initially thought would be a week (mum doesnt drive). From there this is what happpened:
Feb 6th - Appointed Biopsy give a shot of Vitamin K as blood was too thin but biopsy didnt happen as doctor needed to leave.
Feb 7th - Biopsy happened and was given a doctors note saying "?Klatskin Tumour" without any conversations or anything. I came home and Googled this to find it was a rare and aggressive form of cancer with only 25% of people surviving months after diagnosis)
Feb 9th - An appointment with a consultant at a random hospital who had not got results of the biopsy although explained to Dad that due to the type of tumour he had they would need to insert a stent to relieve his jaundice and give him chemo to provide a comfortable life for some time. Offers a chance to wait in hospital for procedure although due to covid wasn't recommended or wait at home. He chose to wait at home and was prescribed Vitamin K in prep for surgery.
Feb 11th - Suspected DVT due to Vitamin K and so prescribed blood thinning shots
Feb 15th - Finally a call from the consultant who said they would like to bring him in. Took Dad to hospital in prep for stent insertion
Feb 16th - Dad calls on Facetime distraught that the consultant had told him no operations would happen and he has weeks to live. I was told consultant would be calling me from Macmillan support.
Feb 17th - I call first thing chasing consultant call, receive nothing. Dad is discharged with a view to speak to him again in 4-6 weeks... When he will most likely have passed?!
Feb 18th - Call again - nothing.
Feb 21st - First visit from Macmillan Nurse and she says will have the consultant call. That afternoon recieve a call from his nurse to tell me what was discussed. Basically 'He is dying, he is on Steroids to keep him alive but without them will die, he can only be on these another week' When asked what had changed I was told 'they didnt know but on hindsight shouldn't have got his hopes up when he was taken into hospital'
March 1st - Dad runs out of 4mg Dex and is on 2mg. Nurse decides Dad is still responding too well to Dex so keeps up his doasge of 4mg so double up.
March 4th - Dad stops eating, he tries so hard for us but he just can't. We note the start of a decline.
March 12th - Dad doesn't get out of bed anymore, people start coming to say goodbye to him
March 15th - Get an appointment from the consultant who will call - some other junior staff member did instead.
March 16th - The last day he told me he loved me and spoke.
March 18th - 4pm he passed away listening to me singing to all his favourite songs.
I feel he was failed so badly in that he was given a letter with a diagnosis nobody took him through, he was promised surgery and chemo and then that didn't happen. Hope is the only thing any person with cancer has and to take that away from him so dramatically is unforgivable... Has anyone else been in this situation and done something about it? In the end if I was to tret a client poorly in my job I get raked over the coals, why should a doctor be able to do it just because they have the power to potentially heal us? I feel this is so wrong and want some justice even if it is a better process for those following in his shadow later... Would also like to add, I STILL never heard from the Consultant in all of this.
