My mum is 80 and has chronic COPD. She has had no quality of life for the past 18 months and has been in and out of hospital frequently. Yesterday she was in a lot of pain in her leg, it was totally paper white when I looked and she couldn't move her toes or feel her leg. Up to a and e we went.
She has a blood clot in her leg. They said for a healthy person they would operate straight away however she wouldn't survive the operation. They put her on morphine, antibiotics and a drug to try and dissolve the clot.
The doctor and surgeon this morning said that nothing is working and at this stage they would want to amputate the leg but she won't survive the surgery so basically there is nothing they can do.
My mum knows what is going on and is quite calm about it although she is still in some pain and hasn't eaten. Palliative care is starting tomorrow.
I feel really overwhelmed and numb, her leg is turning black. What can I expect from here? It seems they are just waiting for sepsis to set in and this sounds like an extremely painful death.
What should I expect from here? Does anyone know a timeline that I can expect deterioration? I am trying to prepare myself but also thinking surely there must be SOMETHING they can do? It doesn't seem right to just let her lie there with a black leg and let sepsis set in.