Yes I totally believe that too , it was just the fact everyone was not being honest with our family regarding mums condition from the very beginning of her illness, and she was not treated in anyway and as I said she went into hospice for respite for few days and was quite happy, talkative in right frame of mind then soon as that was put in she couldn’t stay awake then she was gone 4 days later such a shock .

Syringe drivers are almost always only ever used during end of life care. This can lead to them being wrongly blamed for hastening death. 

Sadly there may well be some cases where they are used inappropriately or inexpertly. In my Mum's case, the syringe driver reduced the pain and stress involved in her receiving pain control via frequent intravenous injections. The contrast between her peaceful death and my grandad's could not be greater - pain management had improved so much in the 15 or so years between these two events.

I believe that in the majority of cases the syringe drivers are an effective medical device.

My one experience of seeing a syringe driver in use was much the same as you have described, davek.  When a friend had lost the ability to swallow - and was very near the end of his life - his morphine was put into a driver so that the pain could be controlled in his final days.  He died a peaceful death and was conscious in his last moments.

I  cant believe what i am reading i believe the same thing  has happened to my Dad, he died a week ago and i fought to get him fluids and tried  to stop them  drugging him i wanted him to come home but i lost the battle they all thought i was an hysterical daughter. This treatment should not be allowed without talking to the  family  my dad died in Marie curie  and was stopped  all food fluids & medication and was what felt like was put to sleep, he was given sedation and pain relief through 1 syringe driver they gave him melazapam with opoids and other medication without consulting us he never closed his eyes and just stared at the ceiling  for 5 days he couldnt speak or communicate because of the sedation i dont find the way my dad died as dying with dignity it was barbaric . I will never get over how my dads life ended i am truly heartbroken and cannot forget how his life was ended too soon 

Hi,

I lost my wife 3 weeks ago and her last few days were spent hooked up to a driver dosed up with Morphine and Midazolam.

She had metastatic breast cancer in her lungs and during those last days she had built up a fear of not being able to breathe, hence the reason for the driver, and because apparently those drugs releived her symptoms, which they seemed to do.  But, as a consequence she became very drowsy and gradually over the duration of those last days lost her ability to eat, drink and communicate with her family. 

The disease in her lungs was apparently advanced and had restricted her bronchus, so I'm not sure that the driver caused her death, it was probably just the fact that her lungs could no longer function properly.  Without the driver she would have endured unimaginable suffering, and I say that because her passing was the most traumatic thing I've ever seen, and that was even with the driver in!  Her passing was so violent that she was gasping for her last breaths of air like a fish out of water, it was horrible to see such a lovely woman have to go through that! 

Now, do I like drivers?.. No I certainly dont, and nor am I a fan of NHS Palliative care either after watching my beloved wife go through that.  To be blunt, the palliative care teams idea of comforting my wife was to hook her up to a driver and that was it, just keep topping it up and leave her to struggle with her breaths.  I can honestly say, and I also had no qualms about saying this to the palliative care nurses, was that what I saw them do was shocking and completely inhumane. A vet would have put an animal down, rather than let it go through the same trauma that my wife endured. 
I can honestly say that I now completely understand why terminally ill patients campaign for euthanasia!

I am very bitter about the whole cancer journey that my wife went through, it has destroyed her life and shattered the family completely, and as her husband I am completely devastated!

Hi,

So sorry to read about the circumstances of your wife’s death and the impact it has had on you and your family. 

You might want to consider writing a letter to your local CCG about how badly let down you feel your wife was. The syringe driver is only a mean of delivering medication, if the wrong medication or insufficient quantities were prescribed the result would be the same however it was administered. A letter would ensure they looked into your wife’s care and might help stop someone else going through the same awful experience. 

As a cancer patient who has seen close relatives die of cancer I will always be an advocate of legal assisted suicide. It is my life and I should have the right to choose how I leave it.

Best wishes 

Dave

OMG you poor thing, I am so sorry for you. I still suffer over my dad's death. I took it to solicitors and the NHS. I only ever wanted justice for my dad and everyone else who has gone through this. But oh no, they will never admit they are wrong. I still can't look at the nurses from the local hospital and they know it. They digust me.

The outcome of my case with the NHS was a 19 page report. 12 mistakes were found during my dad's treatment and 13 recommendations were made for the hospital and I was thanked by the NHS. Seemingly I've made that hospital a better place and there not so quick in putting the driver in now without consulting the family. But it's still happening all over the country. I hope they all get there karma.

God bless you and I wish I could take away how you feel because I know what the pain feels like. I felt like I was dying everyday. It's been two and a half years and I'm only now trying to be at peace. I became a very angry, bitter woman, please don't let that happen to you. These people are not worth it and we'll never beat the NHS. Take care. 

Dear Sam,what a wonderful thing you are doing fund raising to buy syringe drivers for those at home to be able to have. My late husband some 25 yrs ago now was very fortunate to have one at home when he was suffering from Cancer of the Tongue ,without it he could never have been with me and the children in the last months,weeks ,days and ,moments of his life. He was pain free ,he could obviously not swallow because of where his Tumour was ,he felt so grateful for having the Syringe driver,that following his passing we bought one for our Cancer Care Unit so someone else could like your friend`s Dad be comfotable in their own home surrounded by friends and family. I hope Nichola reading what everyone has said in response to her post,will feel very reassured about the use of syringe Drivers and to you i commend what you are doing .xx