Mr James Diggle, 68-years-old, has been diagnosed with metastatic lung cancer. He long ago lost his wife, Catherine, whom he had two sons with, John and
Marcus. The two sons both have families of their own now. He lived alone, but due to his deteriorating health and increasing symptom distress, he could no longer take care of himself. He had already been advised that his prognosis is short and has decided to enter himself at Lotus Compassionate Care.
It depresses him so that he misses his wife very much. He wished Catherine was there to keep him company and to comfort him in his darkest moments. To worsen things, he has not spoken to John in a long time because of disagreements from the past. Marcus, on the other hand, together with his family, visits Mr Diggle whenever they can. It pleases James so much to see his grandkids. He wishes to reconcile with John and sincerely hopes that his two sons will be by his side before he dies.
Mr Diggle is often seen alone on the porch, reading a book. He does not mingle that much with the other residents. He also used to be an active member of the church, but his cancer had led him to feel hopeless, and he cannot help it but lose faith in God.
In his first week, Mr Diggle is lively and alert, and he walks with the help of a walking aid. He needs assistance with some of his activities for daily living (ADLs) including walking up the stairs and showering. He tires easily and encounters difficulty in breathing.
He has complained about this persistent pain he has been feeling, which is worsening over time. The pain medication he is on is only helping a little. Aside from this, his appetite is poor and could not sleep because of the pain. Changes to Mr Diggle’s care plan will be made to help him address these symptoms.
By the second week, Mr Diggle’s symptoms have improved. However, his fatigue has not improved and only worsened. Now he spends more time in bed. Due to the progression of his disease, he has started to become confused and disoriented at times.
In his third week, Mr Diggle becomes less responsive. He cannot eat food or take oral medication anymore. He is restless at times, and he is now bedridden. He has noisy respiratory secretions.
Following the changes made to Mr Diggle’s care plan, his dosage pain medication was increased to address his worsening pain.
In response to this, you overheard Isabelle, your co-worker, saying: “Are they even sure about increasing Mr Diggle’s dosage? He might become addicted!”
Agatha, another co-worker of yours, agreed, saying: “I think it was only Mr Diggle who decided to increase his pain medication dosage. I think they should just leave it all to the doctor to decide what’s best for him.”
a. Provide a short description to Rachel Allcot, referring Isabelle and Agatha’s misconceptions to her.
b. Provide an appropriate response to Isabelle and Agatha, addressing their misconceptions on the use of pain-relieving medication.
Are they even sure about increasing Mr Diggle’s dosage? He might become addicted!”
YOUR RESPONSE:
“I think it was only Mr Diggle who decided to increase his pain medication dosage. I think they should just leave it all to the doctor to decide what’s best for him.”
YOUR RESPONSE:
