RIP Kay Rose

[King Bob]

My mom died yesterday. I was going to post but thought I'd give the day to Brian Dennehy. She had been declining since November; she was hospitalized for three bouts of pneumonia and came back weaker each time. After the last we put her on hospice care at the recommendation of her doctor, even though  it seemed a bit premature. Then last Monday I got a call that she had drastically declined and that we could come visit (end of life is the only reason they will allow visitors now). She was somewhat agitated/twitchy, her eyes were unfocused and she mumbled incoherently. Although at one point she grabbed both my hands, looked me right in the eyes and said "I love you." Then it was back to incoherence. As far as I know, that was her last lucid moment. She got a little worse each day until she was unconscious all the time.

I was glad she went before her dementia got too bad. She had gotten pretty pathetic anyway though.

For your future reference, if the doctor recommends hospice, do it even if it seems too early. It's covered by Medicare. You can avoid a useless last hospital stay, and they have their own doctors, so they can take over med management. They can also supply any needed medical equipment.