Swapna Kishore was a caregiver for her mother for many years. She has created many online resources for dementia caregivers in India, including an English website, Dementia Care Notes and its Hindi version Dementia Hindi. Here, she answers some questions by PatientsEngage.
Please tell us about your mother's early dementia symptoms and how her condition progressed.
My mother's early symptoms included mild disorientation, memory problems, and repeating herself…
You’ve been asked to take a terminally ill loved one home. Are you ready for this? Dr. R. Akhileswaran, Medical Director, HCA Hospice Care, Singapore tells you how to make the last days as comfortable as possible in this interview with PatientsEngage. Plus, talking about death and other questions we are too afraid to ask. 1. Patients in their last stage of life are often advised by doctors to take the patient home but family members are often afraid to do so. …
The delay in diagnosis changes the prognosis, treatment approach, and the cost associated with it, dramatically By Jame Abraham, M.D, FACP, Cleveland Clinic Arathi is a 47-year-old, highly successful systems engineer from Mumbai. About six months ago, she noticed some discomfort in her left breast. When she raised her arm above her head to comb her hair, she noticed some skin changes on the left breast. But she chose to ignore that, too. When she developed a constant nagging pain in her…
Says Dr V Shanta, cancer specialist and the Chairperson of Adyar Cancer Institute, Chennai. Lung cancer, which is related to smoking, is today the top cancer in the country. Within the year, 15.5% of 13 to 15-year-olds are going to start smoking. Don’t let your child be one of them. Plus, how smoking harms non-smokers, too. 1. How grave is the health problem posed by tobacco use in India? How much of it relates to smoking cigarettes, beedis and how much is it due to consumption of gutka,…
World No Tobacco Day is on May 31. Cancer survivor Vandana Gupta (VG), the founder of V Care, a support service for cancer patients and their families in India, talks about the urgent need to protect your kids and family members from the widespread scourge of tobacco use. Plus, what to say to kids who think smoking is cool. PE: Your organisation, V Care, offers support to different types of cancer patients. What are the specific challenges pertaining to …
While conscious but not knowing her life was at risk, the patient was against amputation. Lawyer Lyn Boxall presents a case of doctors acting in the best interest of the patient when only an amputation could save her life. Mdm LP, a diabetic, consulted Dr Tan at the Gleneagles Medical Centre in October 2005 complaining about pain in both feet1. She said she had been told by doctors at Singapore General Hospital and at Tan Tock Seng hospital that her right leg had…
A widely prevalent skew in kidney donation — gender disparity — is just as shocking as economic disparity, when the bald numbers are scanned. Doctors at Narayana Health, a large Bangalore-headquartered hospital chain run by well-known cardiac surgeon Devi Shetty, found that an overwhelming 65 per cent of kidney donors in its hospitals are women, whereas 70 per cent of kidney recipients are male. Kidney donation is a medically proven safe process that has no bearing on a person’s lifespan. Yet,…
Your friend is a caregiver and you don't know how to help...here are 10 tips 1. Don’t say, “What can I do to help?”. Just do it. 2. Remember me before I was a caregiver 3. Please don’t stop including/inviting me. I need to know I am wanted. 4. Don’t try to fix my situation. Don’t stop being the listener you always were. 5. Let me know you think of me – Many days I feel forgotten by the world. 6. Follow my lead – There are times I need to talk. Sometimes I just…
He was diagnosed with colon cancer in his first year of junior college, which kept him away from school for four months. But that did not stop Hwa Chong Institution student Ng Yi Pin from catching up with his studies. He also managed to find the time and energy to tutor his older twin brother, Yi Yang, who studied in the same school. Yesterday, the 18-year-old scored eight As for his A levels. Yi Yang also made a marked improvement from his usual results. Yi Pin was in Secondary 4 when he…
