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A I feel that the quality of Life has more Importance than the quantity of life. It Is important to make decisions together that family members can live with after the death of their loved one. While I would support a persons right to pursue further treatments, medicine can only do so much and in many cases reduces the quality of the time you have left. Spending time together, talking and sharing should be an important part of this time. That in my opinion and experience is what people remember and cherish.
Section B My first strategy would be to encourage Mrs.. Thomas to take her pain medication as she needed. I would address the fear of becoming addicted and explain to her the benefits of using the medication. These would Include her being able to rest better therefore enabling her to function. If she Is more comfortable, she may even be able to do more of her own care and then may feel better about herself. She may even be able to manage to work for few hours to help out or do things around the house to help out. Her sons may feel more comfortable about visiting and helping UT.
This, in my opinion, would also help Mr.. Thomas. He is under a lot of stress due to financial issues along with dealing with her illness and his feelings about it, seeing her more comfortable and able to do for herself, he would be able to relax some. My second strategy would be to encourage Mr.. Thomas to receive some counseling (sometimes talking to someone can ease a lot of stress) and further evaluation of his own health (mental and physical). Just as Mrs.. Thomas’ illness is taking a toll on him, his health Is a burden for her.
If he his feeling better, he will be able to be more supportive and helpful to his wife. My third strategy would be to have a discussion with Mrs.. Thomas about how she would Like the end of her life to be. This would Include having her discuss an advanced directive (If not already done). Also, she could plan her funeral service and other details that the family needs to know. I help him be less afraid of the end. Section C Cancer patients have times good times and bad times. During her good times, I would have Mrs.. Thomas do what she feels up to without over doing it.
This could include cooking meals, light housekeeping, going out and visiting with friends. I would suggest to her husband that advantage of the good times and he take her out for walks, to the store and to see friends. This may take some pushing on his part but it would be good for both of them. I would reach out to the sons and their wives. I understand that it is hard to deal with aging parents and even harder when one is dying but I would explain that spending time with their parents is needed for both parties. I would explain to them that not dealing with this could cause a lot of difficult emotions later.
Also, I would reach out to local churches and cancer resources to see enlist volunteers to help with meals, housekeeping, yard work or Just spending time with Mrs.. Thomas while her husband is working. Although neither Mr.. Nor Mrs.. Thomas want to burden others, I have found police departments to be a rather close knit group. I would reach out to Mr.. Thomas’ coworkers to see if some wives would be willing to help. When Mrs.. Thomas is no longer able to care for herself, I would arrange for hospice volunteers to be there to care for her and support him.
I would make sure we ad needed medical equipment, oxygen, pain medication and proper nursing care. At this point, I would encourage Mr.. Thomas to take a leave of absence if possible or at least cut back on hours to be there for his wife. Section D As for intervening in the management of Mr.. Thomas’ depression, along with getting professional help; I would encourage him to maintain friendships with coworkers and long time friends. Also, talking with his sons frequently. He also could take advantage of the times when someone is with his wife and take some time for himself. Even Just taking a walk would be good.