Hi everyone. My 90 year old grandmother just died. They had a ventalator tube down her throat for 14 days. They said they can't keep the tube in any longer than 14 days, so our options were to go to a Trakeotomy tube in her neck, or just let her go in piece.
Every doctor and nurse said to let her go in piece. BUT, one doctor who's a friend of the family said that the trake procedure isn't that bad and that she could possibly one day get better and go back to just oxygen.
But more likely she'd go to a really crappy old folks home and live her last days with a tube connected to her neck. Unable to speak, walk, eat, etc.
Anyways, I had one relative who wanted to do the trake procedure. He's mad at us for not trying everything, and we can't believe he doesn't see our side of it.
What would you guys do? Would you keep them alive and try even though its probably pointless and you would just prolong their suffering? Or would you take the tube out of their throat and just let them go in piece, with lots of morphine to take away the pain?
You should all let your families know what you want for yourselves. Now we know that none of us want the trake in the throat, unless we are young enough that we will recover. But if we only have a 20% chance of getting better and having a good quality of life, we all said NO, let us go in piece.
I'm assuming religious people might say do everything you can, no matter what. I'm curious to hear what others have to say.
Every doctor and nurse said to let her go in piece. BUT, one doctor who's a friend of the family said that the trake procedure isn't that bad and that she could possibly one day get better and go back to just oxygen.
But more likely she'd go to a really crappy old folks home and live her last days with a tube connected to her neck. Unable to speak, walk, eat, etc.
Anyways, I had one relative who wanted to do the trake procedure. He's mad at us for not trying everything, and we can't believe he doesn't see our side of it.
What would you guys do? Would you keep them alive and try even though its probably pointless and you would just prolong their suffering? Or would you take the tube out of their throat and just let them go in piece, with lots of morphine to take away the pain?
You should all let your families know what you want for yourselves. Now we know that none of us want the trake in the throat, unless we are young enough that we will recover. But if we only have a 20% chance of getting better and having a good quality of life, we all said NO, let us go in piece.
I'm assuming religious people might say do everything you can, no matter what. I'm curious to hear what others have to say.