“The hospice worker said when she was being admitted that she probably had about 2 weeks,”
They know. The Hospice lady with my mother called in the family who was outdoors doing chores. She said Mom had about a half hour, and now would be the time to come in and say goodbyes. They did. It was almost exactly a half hour.
“They know. The Hospice lady with my mother called in the family who was outdoors doing chores. She said Mom had about a half hour, and now would be the time to come in and say goodbyes. They did. It was almost exactly a half hour.”
Yes they do. They have been through it hundreds of times and know. The tell tale sign is when they start taking “guppy breaths” and the breaths start to slow and get farther apart. Neck, knee and elbow joints get stiff, skin becomes mottled and blue on the feet and hands, face turns white, and they are already losing body temperature and getting cold. There really is a standard industry check list.
Sounds a bit morbid, but that is reality. But there are indeed common indicators that can give them a fairly accurate timeline.
And it is wrong to assume it doesn’t bother them too, strong emotions can distort reality. Three of my kids work in the industry for a living as rest home nurses and hospice. They do indeed make friends with these residents and come to love them. But even though it does hurt them for a few days they still have a job to do and have to do it professionally as best they can under the circumstances. My kids still have some residents they will never forget.