What a day this has been....!

Hubby went to take some shopping to one of his pensioner friends today......when he got there the poor chap was in a real mess.....he had been overtaken in the night with sickness and diarrhoea.....he had soiled all his clothes and was too weak to get to the bathroom to clean himself up.
Hubby dropped the shopping off in the kitchen and ran a bowl of hot soapy water and began the cleaning up operation.
His nightwear was consigned to a black plastic bag...to be binned.
The poor old chap was beside himself with embarassment.
Hubby offered to ring for the doctor, but the chap said 'No, just go to the chemist and get me some lmodium and I will be alright.
Hubby came home and told me all about his morning....and that he was going to go out and get the medication that had been requested. I was surprised that hubby coped with the cleaning up operation in the way that he did...he hasn't done much of that kind of stuff before....unless of course you count washing cow pats off the dog.

We went into Accrington and got the medication.....hubby asked me to come and have a look at the old boy, just to see whether we should convince him to have the doctor.
When we got to the house there was a very strong odour of vomit and air freshener.
I peeped in at the old fella and he had just vomitted again......I went and got him a glass of water to wash the bitter taste of bile from his mouth......told him just to rinse his mouth out....to wait until the nausea had subsided before having just little sips of water.
His colour was ghastly, he was a greyish yellow, and clammy. I told him that i thought he should have the doctor to call......and he must have felt bad because he agreed.
I called the surgery and asked for a home visit - I explained that the gentleman was elderly and was vomitting and had diarrhoea.
'Can't you bring him to the surgery?' said the receptionist.
'No, he really isn't fit to sit in a waiting room full of people' I countered.
'well, the Doctor is already out on his rounds, but I will try and get in touch with him'

I told the old fella that the doctor would come and see him and that we would call back later to see if he needed a prescription fetching, or if he felt better I would make him a little snack.
'OK' was the reply.

We came home and had some lunch and I did some banking.
About two o clock I said to hubby
'should we just go and check on the old boy?'
'No, leave it for another half an hour' he said.
So we set off at two thirty....it only takes five minutes to get to his house.
All was quiet.....we knocked and announced ourselves and hubby went in......he looked to the chair where the old fella spent his days watching the world go by...and the old boy wasn't there.......I waited in the lobby.....hubby went into the middle room...no he wasn't there either......so he shouted upstairs.....no reply. I pushed the front room door open and there was the old boy on the settee.....his trousers round his ankles and his glasses askew.

My husband recoiled in horror....it was plain to see that the old man had passed on.

I felt for a pulse, there was none, no respirations and his extremities were already cold and blue.
I rang the ambulance and told them what had happened....the ambulance controller asked me if I thought he had just passed away, and did I need some guidance to try CPR......I told her that in my opinion he had been extinct for going on for an hour and I thought it would be a pointless exercise, then I told her why I felt it was inappropriate.....retired nurse and all that.
I sent hubby off to get the old man's sister, and waited for the paramedics and the police
The paramedics arrived just before the old man's sister......she is 80 and not in the best of health herself......she was ashen with shock.......I offered her a cup of tea while the paramedics got on with what they had to do(which wasn't much really other than fill in a form and listen for a heartbeat and run off an ECG).
I asked her if she would like me to contact her son in Scotland....but the shock had made her forget the number.......I said 'Well, let's look in your brothers phone book - it must be in there somewhere'
We eventually found it and I (his mum was too upset to speak) rang him and told him the sad news.
He told me to tell his mum he would set off right away...and would be with her by about 8pm.
His sister wanted me to put the old fella's teeth back in for him...she didn't like to see him without his teeth....but she couldn't do it. Well, I tried but they just kept falling down and looked absurd...so we had to abandon that.

I gave as much information as I could to the two policemen.....again to save J the anguish of having to answer questions......Once all this was done with and the undertakers had been, we took the old lady home.

I made us some tea and got hubby to deliver her a hot meal, as I felt sure that she would not want to cook anything for herself, and being diabetic she knows that she has to eat properly at mealtimes.
Since we got home hubby has been upset......he thinks that if perhaps we had gone earlier to see him, then maybe the old fella would still be here.
I'm not so sure. Hubby says he thinks I am a real cool half back - he said i never faltered at all during the emotional turmoil....just got into control mode and that was it.
He doesn't realise that while I may not show outwardly, that I feel touched by the whole thing.......I am still affected by such events.
Besides, this man had had a good long life...many experiences and happiness, has now passed on to another life.
RIP Clifford. Good Night God Bless.