Phew!
The doctor was very nice, despite looking about 12! She was married and had a German Shepherd dog, however, so clearly not as young as she looked....and anyone who's a dog lover is obviously nice!
She told us what would be happening during the assessment and tests, and said that she firstly needed to tell us that if the assessment raised any serious concerns for her, then she could ask husband to stop driving immediately - bit scary, but not surprising, I guess. Fortunately, at the end she said she had no immediate worries about husband carrying on driving, although stressed that this could change at a later date.
She asked questions about husband's recent problems, then about his previous health, early life, employment history etc. She then gave him some written and verbal tests, helping him out with the written ones due to his dyslexia, which she was quite interested in. She also gave me a sheet of questions about my observations about husband, which required tick box answers. She took reams of notes.
She said she couldn't give us any definitive answers today, she would go away and write up her report and then it would be discussed at the team meeting next Wednesday, when it will be decided if husband needs to have a head scan. The head scan will show if his carotid arteries are narrowed, and if there are any areas of concern in his brain caused by his heart failure or diabetes. I wouldn't have thought his borderline diabetes had caused any problems.....although, having said that, he already has some minor retinopathy and neuropathy issues, whereas I have none, despite me being diabetic for 10 or 11 years. We will get the results of the assessment at the end of next week, so not too long to wait - I don't know how long the head scan results will take. Husband said he feels relieved. I'm relieved that the assessment is over, but won't feel entirely happy until we hear back from her. We should both sleep better tonight though. I feel as if I've been holding my breath for the past fortnight, and can now let it out.....slowly.
It's so good that this scariest part is now out of the way. Being put on the spot answering questions is never easy, especially when you are both worried sick. It's good that you should hear the results of this assessment quite quickly after the doctors meeting next week.
ReplyDeleteAs you say you can now breathe, and hopefully enjoy the bank holiday weekend knowing that this is behind you. xx
Phew! At least she had no immediate concerns. You'll both be able to rest easy for a while now. Enjoy the weekend. xx
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like she was very thorough and it’s good news she had no immediate concerns, that must be a bit of a relief. I hope you’re able to relax a little now although I appreciate you’re waiting for the full report. X
ReplyDeleteI am glad she was likeable and hope for the best for your DH next week. Hugs.
ReplyDeleteSo glad to hear that the doctor was very understanding and the assessment went well with no immediate concerns. I thought perhaps this video might be worth you watching as the results are very encouraging to prevent dementia and may possibly help to stop it from getting any worse. I believe it was a 10 year trial in Canada originally started to see if Vitamin D would help pre-diabetic people but it was then found to actually help prevent dementia. I have been following Dr John Campbell all through the pandemic - he worked in the NHS for many years and has interviewed many prominent consultants on his You Tube channel about the effects of vitamin D on many illnesses. We spend so little time outdoors these days especially in winter and don't get much vit D through our skin from the sun - we used to get some of our vit D through the milk delivered to our doorstep - since we mostly get our milk in the supermarket it is not exposed to the sun anymore and another reason so many people are deficient. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U4CD1uKnZA&t=17s
ReplyDeleteFingers crossed for a favourable report.
The doctor sounds wonderful and very thorough. Hoping the best for your next appointment.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
She sounds a very pleasant and thorough doctor who made a stressful experience as unstressful as she could. Thank goodness he can still drive for now. xx
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