I got called in today to see this elderly man, who lives with his kids.
On Friday night he fell asleep on the couch while watching TV. He looked so comfortable the family put a blanket over him and left him there.
He slept all day Saturday, barely moving. They left him alone.
And Sunday morning.
It wasn't until early Sunday afternoon that somebody thought, "Hey, Gramps hasn't woken up in over 40 hours. Maybe we should try to wake him".
Not surprisingly, they discovered they couldn't wake him up, and called 911.
So there's today's medical advice: It is NOT normal for the elderly to sleep for almost 48 continuous hours.
I am absolutely shocked that it took that long, it's not like he was in some obscure part of the house where he wasn't seen. The actually probably walked by him several times a day and it didn't dawn on any of them that grandpa could be in need of medical services. This is one time I am thinking a nursing home would be better.
ReplyDeleteWow, this was posted over a year ago, but I've been reading the archives (backwards, for some reason), and I just got to this one.
ReplyDeleteSure, that reflects somewhat on the family's common sense. But on the other hand ... assuming he really was approaching the end of his days ... that doesn't sound like a half-bad way to go.
It is however completely normal for a student of any type to sleep that long! Please, don't bug me! I am catching up here!
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