My father is a kidney cancer pt - I need advice.

[Frannasmom]

I'm due to start my first semester of nursing in a few weeks, and have no experience with patients who are having cognitive issues. My father had his right kidney removed in October - he has kidney cancer. After the surgery, he was very altered as to time/place etc. It took 3 weeks before he was back to normal. To this day, we don't know what happened. Recently, he's begun to act weirdly, or as my mom would put it "out of it." He has periods where he isn't lucid at all, he's started to slur his words, thinks he & mom are still married - they divorced 22 years ago. He called me a few nights ago asking where my mom was, that she wasn't home, and that he was tired and needed to go to bed, but couldn't without her. He had started the day off thinking they were still married, then progressed to them being seperated, then getting a divorce. He's been seeing his parent's, both of which died over 10 years ago. He talks about his dad as if he was still alive. We have an appointment with his PCP, to get a referral to a neurologist, but that's a week away. My question is this, when he starts talking about past things as if it was happening now, do I try to reorient him to the present, or go along with it? How do I handle it?

[NurseyBaby'05, BSN, RN]

Get him to the hospital! Pronto! There could be any number of things causing his mental status changes. Some of them are more critical than others. Does he have an Oncologist? Call him or her and tell him what you told us. He or she may be able to directly admit him rather than going through the ED. A regular PCP should not be managing his care at this point.

That's about all I can say without violating TOS of this board re:medical advice. This may well be his basline depending on the progress of his disease, but a conversation with his Oncologist should be able to tell you that. And if he doesn't have one, get to the ER ASAP and get one when he's admitted.

Good-luck, honey! :icon_hug:

[VivaLasViejas, ASN, RN]

NurseyBaby is absolutely right: your father needs to be seen ASAP.

I'm sorry, but we cannot offer medical help, advice, diagnoses etc. in these forums. We wish you all the best of luck.......it sounds like you will need it.

Closing thread now.