Doctors just I’ll equipped for elderly!

[Anonymous]

Like super elderly since this is probably the first time in modern history when there have been so many nonegenarians.

I find myself meeting with doctors who (while always well-intentioned) seem to be out of their depth with the elderly.

[Anonymous]

Whoops, OP here. That should say “ill equipped”

[Anonymous]

I agree, OP. My dad, who passed away in April, was 80 and had late-stage Parkinsons. His kind general dr, whom I liked, readily admitted a few years ago that Dad's case was 'a bit past him'. I respected him for being honest about that. It makes sense when you think about it-in Dad's case, he was very elderly and didn't have other co-morbidities, which is usually what kills people with Parkinsons before the very advanced stage he was in.

We did go regularly to a Parkinsons clinic and even there, he was one of the most advanced patients they saw. But, at least by doing that, some young drs got a chance to see and learn about something that will defenitely be more common as the population lives longer.

[Anonymous]

80 is not the very elderly anymore. Trump and Biden. 90+ would be that today.

[Anonymous]

It depends on how aggressively you want to treat elderly who are in their 80’s and 90’s. Too many doctors are recommending going to specialists and aggressive medical treatment. The goal should be comfort not trying to add months or a couple of years by undergoing painful procedures that don’t add to quality of life.
Why do you think the doctor was ill equipped? A general practitioner is often in a tough position because they don’t want to be sued for negligence if they don’t refer patients to specialist but they probably see there is such a poor outcome of aggressive treatment like doing open heart surgery on an 85 year old or treating pancreatic cancer.

[Anonymous]

We need more geriatricians.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We need more geriatricians.

You won't get them. My friend's dad worked in the field for many years and saw the changes. He would not advise anyone go into the field even though he was beloved. You have more people living to get dementia-mean, combative dementia who want to age at home and not comply with meds. Often you now need policies to make it clear to these patients they are not allowed to be abusive to staff or they will be asked to leave and possibly released as patients. Then you have more families, uninvolved families, who then feel free to sue and blame hoping to make some money off of something that cannot be blamed on the doctor..hoping the doctor will settle to avoid a prolonged suit. It just takes one lawyer willing to take even a frivolous case and there are lawyers who make their nest egg suing nursing homes and any doctors working with the elderly. Plus, the pay doesn't make it worth it. At least in pediatrics you get some adorable kids and babies and in internal medicine with young adults and middle age you get people who can advocate for themselves clearly and you are less likely to deal with extreme behaviors.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We need more geriatricians.

You won't get them. My friend's dad worked in the field for many years and saw the changes. He would not advise anyone go into the field even though he was beloved. You have more people living to get dementia-mean, combative dementia who want to age at home and not comply with meds. Often you now need policies to make it clear to these patients they are not allowed to be abusive to staff or they will be asked to leave and possibly released as patients. Then you have more families, uninvolved families, who then feel free to sue and blame hoping to make some money off of something that cannot be blamed on the doctor..hoping the doctor will settle to avoid a prolonged suit. It just takes one lawyer willing to take even a frivolous case and there are lawyers who make their nest egg suing nursing homes and any doctors working with the elderly. Plus, the pay doesn't make it worth it. At least in pediatrics you get some adorable kids and babies and in internal medicine with young adults and middle age you get people who can advocate for themselves clearly and you are less likely to deal with extreme behaviors.

Plaintiffs’ lawyers typically front (and risk) the expenses in litigation, which can be considerable in malpractice cases; they also front, and risk, their time. “Frivolous” cases are a good way to go broke in a hurry. Even successful cases often take years to complete and collect.

I’m sure there are doctors found liable and/or who have insurance companies settle claims against them over their objection who probably should have been exhonerated. But there are also legitimate claimants who recover pennies on the dollar or nothing.

[Anonymous]

I noticed that as my father aged, medical staff was more often disregarding his symptoms or input. I was his advocate, but it depressed me to think of all the seniors who don't have someone looking out for them or speaking up for their needs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I noticed that as my father aged, medical staff was more often disregarding his symptoms or input. I was his advocate, but it depressed me to think of all the seniors who don't have someone looking out for them or speaking up for their needs.

An advocate makes all the difference, and not just for the elderly.

[Anonymous]

I had a hard time getting hospital staff to understand that Mom was suffering from something that came on suddenly. She had been doing the NYT crossword puzzle every morning and learning new knitting patterns. What they saw was not who she was. Ultimately, she recovered and was more herself.

[Anonymous]

^ she was close to 90

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:80 is not the very elderly anymore. Trump and Biden. 90+ would be that today.

It's very elderly. Trump and Biden are outliers.

[Anonymous]

That is why there are fellowships in geriatric medicine now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I noticed that as my father aged, medical staff was more often disregarding his symptoms or input. I was his advocate, but it depressed me to think of all the seniors who don't have someone looking out for them or speaking up for their needs.

Perhaps because there comes a point in a persons life that there isn’t really a benefit to treating something. Or doing the most aggressive treatment.