morphine given too randomly in elderly patients!

sandra4453 · Newbie Joined: 12 Jan 2007 Posts: 1

Morphine, MS Contin and Roxinal - given to my father in small doses, different times while on hospice. I believe that this is what ultimately caused my father to decline and die. 83 years old, broke his hip, surgery (pins), was on a constant Dilaudid drip in the hospital which worked well for pain management. He was then diagnosed with "failure to thrive" in the SNF, couldn't rehabilitate (at least not fast enough), sent home and hospice came on board. As soon as he was administered morphine (1 mg Roxinol), he went down....was "snowed" and no more given. He became alert again and was then given methadone and vicadin which was not effective enough (according to hospice) in controlling the pain. They then switched to MS Contin - 15 mg. when he became completely snowed once again. I've since read how morphine, ms contin causes toxicity in elders, especially those with renal problems (which my father had, which hospice knew) and from 3 doses of 15 mg. of ms contin given 12 hours apart, my father never gained full clarity and died on January 5th, 2007. They kept claiming "coincidence" how each time the morphine caused him to become semi-comatose, that he was breaking down and not from the morphine. Yeah, they controlled his pain, all right....by keeping him totally down and snowed as they referred to it. Hospice's drug of choice is morphine, regardless of a patient’s history. Morphine is not a recommended drug in some patients, including those with past renal problems and the elderly. Hospice has no regard for those considerations so anyone reading this, please beware and heed warning from my father's experience with morphine. Hydromorphine (Dilaudid) would have been a safer drug for pain management. Wish I knew then what I know now.

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I agree with you 100%, it is horrible how especially the older patients are reguarded by the so called health professionals. My grandmother was also given morphine every 20 mins (hospice directions) She wasn't even complaing of any pain. Even while she was zonked out, morphine liquid was being put into her mouth by dropper, it wasn't but a few days and my precious grandmother was dead. I beleive with all my heart she would still be here if the morphine were never given.
Also my precious Moma, she was in ICU she was put in hospital at first only with possible pneumonia on Oct. 31st, 2005. On Wed. much better, doctor said will go home on Thursday, or Friday for sure. By Sun at 6pm my sweet precious Moma died and I will never get over it. she meant the world to me. She was moved to ICU very early Sunday morning, family not told she had been given a latex cathater, they knew she was allergic to latex. Then we also find out 3 months after she died that she had contracted MRSA, we were lied to about that. And to top it all off looking at her records we find out she was given 40cc/hr IV drip of Morphine. She was not treated for the MRSA. She was on a bipap machine that forces oxygen into the lungs, I beleive that they did not want her to be able to talk to us. We could do nothing about all this because of NO Autopsy, so please, please always get one done if you have a loved one to die, then get all of that persons medical records, ALL of them. I too beleive with all my heart that my sweet precious Moma who had just turned 71 only 25 days before, was killed by the morphine, she had renal problems too.

craig1805 · Newbie Joined: 28 Jul 2008 Posts: 1

A note to those treating the elderly with renal problems. Hospice has been very helpfull in the past with my mother using liquid morphine to eas her pain in terminas cancer. though in my father's case they did not explain ahead of time thst when using morphine sulphate LA IN PATENTS WITH COMPRAMISED RENAL SYSTEMS. tThe use of the "LA" (long acting) twelve hour tablet will stop or close down the kidneys & this will cause the patent to expire. What is hoped for is comfort, but the use of the long acting form does speed up the passing of the patient at least from what the doctor NOW explained.

Guest · Guest

My father went into the Emergency Room for pain in his knee from a fall 3 days earlier. They gave him an injection of something in his left arm but he was still in alot of pain an hour or so later. They then gave him another injection of something ( I heard them mention morphine) and when I asked what they gave him, they told me a narcotic that would make him dilerious. He didn't feel any pain after that and kept falling in and out of sleep but always knew and answered me when he was awake. We had a Med Car help us take him home since he couldn't walk up the stairs into his house and was medicated. We had him lay down in his bed. He NEVER WOKE UP! 15 hours later, my father was dead. This beautiful soul is no longer with us and we are all devastated. He was 92 years old and healthy. Everyone says it was probably his time but I can't believe that. I know he went fast and in his bed but will always wonder if the morphine slowed his heart and made it stop. PLEASE BE SO CAREFUL TO QUESTION ALL MEDICATIONS DOCTORS PRESCRIBE BEFORE ALLOWING THEM TO GIVE TO YOUR LOVED ONES. We put our trust in the doctors and hospital and now my father is no longer with us.

morphine given too randomly in elderly patients!

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