Chapter 8 - Eleanor’s Doctor Had Been Hearing a Different Story Too
I called Mom’s physician.
He sounded relieved when I asked to review the recent concerns.
“Mrs. Bennett has been telling me she eats normally when given access to food.”
I went silent.
“Then why did you think she was losing weight?”
“Your wife described resistance, poor appetite and inconsistent compliance.”
There it was again.
Chloe had called the doctor repeatedly.
She reported:
Eleanor skipped meals.
Eleanor refused recommended exercises.
Eleanor became irritable when corrected.
Eleanor forgot conversations.
The physician had not diagnosed dementia.
In fact, a brief cognitive screen two months earlier was normal for her age.
Chloe left that part out when discussing Mom with me.
Instead she said:
“The doctor is watching her memory.”
Technically true.
Wildly misleading.
The doctor also revealed something worse.
Chloe had asked:
“At what point would you say independent living with family is no longer appropriate?”
He told her that decision required comprehensive assessment and could not be based on family frustration.
She contacted Brookfield anyway.
This had not been spontaneous.
The paperwork, photographs and reports were converging toward one outcome.
Remove Eleanor.
May you like
And make David believe it was medically necessary.
---
Related Stories
