WILLPOWER MELTDOWN SOMETIMES

A woman in her late eighties presented with mild dysarthria and sensory impairment in her arm. She was rushed to the hospital by ambulance. A brain CT revealed a small amount of bleeding in her left thalamus. She had lived alone in a rural town. An orthopedic doctor on emergency duty called me to treat her, while I was at home eating supper. I don’t think it is a neurosurgeon’s job but a physician’s. But I have to obey the rule of the hospital. I went to the hospital and saw her in person. She was lying on a stretcher at the ER. I told her son that she would need to be hospitalized. He said, “she is smart and strong.” I said “ because het symptoms remain, she will not able to live alone again. She will need care.” The day after admission a brain CT revealed no enlargement of the hemorrhage. I told him that on the phone. I had done the same thing for another patient the day before. I talked with her for a while and I understood his saying “ she is smart.” But she did not look strong anymore.