The guessing game

When will mom die?

That is the question which my siblings (and I) continue to ask.

So much so, that the one which holds the Power of Attorneys (not me) asked the hospice nurse to meet to discuss.

I don't know the full outcome of the conversation, but I suspect it was something like "who knows?".

I think the best advice I received on this matter was "you cannot plan for when they will die, you can only plan for when they die".

The funeral is planed and paid for, so that's the best we can do at this point.

Well, I guess we could quit giving her drugs, or feeding her (as someone suggested), but I could not imagine doing so unless she was really in pain or totally out of it. Furthermore, I think that might fall under the category of elder abuse.

Elder abuse is doing something or failing to do something that results in harm to an elderly person or puts a helpless older person at risk of harm. This includes

• Physical, sexual and emotional abuse
• Neglecting or deserting an older person you are responsible for
• Taking or misusing an elderly person's money or property