Obum Mokeme - The Flip Side of Seriousness

He was asked again. “Please correct me if I am wrong,” the doctor said. “So Ann works, buys the food, comes home to cook for you all, and clears up afterwards. Is that why you are demanding for her ‘release’ from hospital?”

“No, that’s not why,” George answered. “We just want her to come home.”

“Alright,” said the Consultant. “The ward team will review the information that you have given to us in the light of Ann’s needs. It will help us to formulate a treatment plan for her. We shall let you know the outcome in due course. Thank you all for coming to the ward round.”

George shouted, “Is that it! Are you not going to ‘release’ her today?”

“No,” answered the consultant. “She needs to remain with us for a few days more.

As he was not the patient, it would be rather out of place to suggest to George that he should look for a job and also try to help with some of the house-hold chores.

George stormed out of the room grunting some obscenities under his breath. He was followed by his mother and his sister, Susan.

After the family’s exit, the consultant said, “This case presents a microcosm of the wider society. George seems to believe that he has a right to the things that Ann does to help her family. Ann on the other hand believes that she is helping her mother with the burden of looking after the family, but she is in fact denying herself a normal life while at the same time allowing the rest to abuse her generosity. If each of them contributed a little bit, instead of putting pressure upon one person, things might work out better for all of them.”

It had become quite clear to the ward team that pressure from the family was the principle cause of Ann’s illness. Although she was not on any psychoactive medication, she had improved significantly during the two weeks that she had been on the ward. While on the ward, she was simply encouraged to eat well at meal times, to participate in ward based activities and to try to sleep well during the night. She remained on the ward for a further week to allow the ward team time to plan her care in readiness for her discharge meeting the following week. Meanwhile, George came to the ward almost every day to find out when Ann would be “released” from the ward.

TREATMENT PLAN:

Rest;

Adequate nutrition;

Good Sleep Hygiene; and

Assertiveness training was also recommended.

A consideration of psychological treatment as recommended by the psychologist was also included.

1 To build a close relationship with someone outside of the family; and possibly to consider marriage;

2 To create a space between her and her family by moving away to build a life of her own, for instance making a request at work, for a transfer to another city; or moving away to another country.

3 To be more assertive and to put her own wellbeing and her own future before that of others.

4 To engage in regular social activities outside the family; for instance by joining a gym, a dancing club or going out for drinks with colleagues after work.

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