You are here: Home Colorectal Cancer Colorectal ... If Your Doctor Abandons ...
Information about all aspects of finances affected by a serious health condition. Includes income sources such as work, investments, and private and government disability programs, and expenses such as medical bills, and how to deal with financial problems.
Information about all aspects of health care from choosing a doctor and treatment, staying safe in a hospital, to end of life care. Includes how to obtain, choose and maximize health insurance policies.
Answers to your practical questions such as how to travel safely despite your health condition, how to avoid getting infected by a pet, and what to say or not say to an insurance company.

Colorectal Cancer: Nearing End Of LIfe

If Your Doctor Abandons You

Next » « Previous

17/18

It is not all that unusual for a doctor to stop seeing a patient when therapeutic medicine can no longer help.

If this happens to you, and you would like the continuing presence of the doctor who has helped you, ask a family member to speak with the doctor. Jane Brody, in Guide To The Great Beyond, quotes Dr. Meiier as suggesting that family members try to appeal to the doctor's human side by saying something like:

  • "My wife is very attached to you and wants to see you before she dies"  OR
  • "My husband is feeling hurt because he hasn't seen you these last weeks and time is running out."

Ms. Brody quotes one woman saying the following to her doctor when she realized her advance cancer was no longer responding to treatment:

    "I know you hoped to cure me and now you feel badly that you couldn't. And I know you did your very best to contain my illness these last months. I'm very     grateful to you for that and the time it gave me. But I also want you to know that, now that we've run out of treatment options, it's very important to me that     you stick with me until the end." 

Alternatively, consider saying something like: 

  • "I really need you now. I need your comfort and wisdom. Please don't abandon me." 
  • "I'm not saying I need you to fix anything. But I do need you to be with me throughout."

Please share how this information is useful to you. 0 Comments

 

Post a Comment Have something to add to this topic? Contact Us.

Characters remaining:

  • Allowed markup: <a> <i> <b> <em> <u> <s> <strong> <code> <pre> <p>
    All other tags will be stripped.