[Verified Answer]: CASE STUDY: FRANCES AND COLIN In 2013 Frances…

CASE STUDY: FRANCES AND COLIN In 2013 Frances lost her husband, Colin, to Parkinson’s disease. For the two years leading up to his death, she experienced many losses due to his declining health. You meet Frances during a home visit one year after Colin’s death. According to her care plan, Frances is described as angry and difficult to get along with. Frances receives services to help her with general maintenance, transport and cleaning. Today you arrive at Frances’s house and find her in an anxious state. When you ask her what is wrong, she shouts and rants and raves, beating her hands against the wall. You make her a cup of tea and ask her if she would like to sit down. Suddenly she bursts into tears and all her grief pours out. She tells you that she feels she has lost everything – there is no point in her carrying on. First she lost Colin’s companionship as dementia claimed his cognitive ability. No longer did they do their afternoon ritual of the cryptic crossword. Then she lost her access to transport as Colin was no longer able to drive – Frances had given up driving years ago, and living in the country means there is no suitable public transport. Frances also lost the person who had looked after everything. Who would clean the gutters now? Who would complete their tax returns, and who would mow the lawns? Perhaps the hardest thing to lose was her husband’s dignity – having to change him when he was soiled, changing his bed during the night when he wet it, reminding him to put on clothes before he went outside, and losing him at the shopping centre. Then Colin died. Frances had expected to feel sad, but instead she felt angry. She was angry with her God who had let Colin suffer so much. She was angry with herself for feeling relieved now she did not have to look after him. She was angry with the happy couples she saw holding hands while walking in the park. She was angry with the whole world because she had lost everything. She was even angry with her grandchildren because they could have fun when she couldn’t – and now she doesn’t see them anymore. Not even her neighbour comes around for a cuppa like she used to before Colin died. Frances says she doesn’t want to live anymore. 1. How would you describe the losses that Frances has experienced? Click or tap here to enter text. 2. Which of Elizabeth Kübler-Ross’s stages of grief does Frances seem to be stuck in? Click or tap here to enter text. 3. What are the risks to Frances’s health? 4. What communication skills would you use with Frances? 5. What support and information would you offer to Frances? 6. To what service could you refer Frances to help her with her suicidal thoughts? 7. Locate a grief and bereavement support counselling service that is in your local area that would be suitable for Frances’s needs. What are the contact details for this service and what services do they offer? 8. What sort of informal grief support would be useful for Frances to access? When you leave Frances, she says she is feeling much better. She thanks you for listening and apologises for breaking down. She says she feels tired after her emotional outpouring. You say goodbye, shut the door and walk out to the street. You are approached by the next door neighbour. ‘I don’t know what’s wrong with Frances,’ she says. ‘She’s so angry with everyone. No wonder no one ever comes to visit. I was going to go round and see if she needed anything and have a cuppa like we used to, but I don’t think she wants to have anything to do with anyone.’ 9. Write a script about what you would say to the neighbour (without breaching any confidences, of course!). Click or tap here to enter text.