My sister has psoriatic arthritis and is currently receiving in-patient care in a dermatology ward. Her psoriasis has flared up badly and her legs are swollen at least twice their normal size. Her pain levels were 10/10 when admitted (every step brought tears to her eyes) despite her playing it down as 6/10, but seems to have reduced to a more tolerable level now. Her temperature spikes regularly every day and she’s had broad spectrum antibiotics since last Friday. Apparently she will be discharged tomorrow or Friday without any real idea of why she’s in so much pain but her psoriasis is clearing up since treatment started.
Since she was admitted, I’ve been supporting her family by clearing a ground floor room to allow her to sleep downstairs. I removed bags and bags of prescription medicines which were strewn amongst the clutter of this disused room and I’m concerned at how much there is, going back at least a year.
My question is, how can she have so many spare Metoject pens, intact, at least a dozen tubs of emollient, steroid creams, statins, amlodipine, folic acid, etc etc? Should I be concerned she’s not following doctor’s instructions or are these medicines overprescribed “just in case”?
She’s a prickly person when it comes to anyone questioning her health (and her reluctance to go to hospital last week), so “confronting” her isn’t an option. She doesn’t exercise healthy sleep hygiene and claims to have a healthy diet because she loves vegetables. However, I cleared bags and bags of chocolate and snack wrappers amongst the clutter.
I am worried. We lost our older sister last year and I want to keep hold of this one!