Follow Up

By no means do I profess to be an expert on health care. I've heard the praise and criticism for the medical systems in both Canada and Australia.  So far, I have very happy with the care dad has received in Australia. Dad has been to see the neurologist at the private hospital in Sydney; part which is covered and the other part he has to pay for.  In my opinion, dad is receiving more attention with his Parkinson's disease.  There are options which are overseen by the neurologist; which in Canada was dealt with by two departments.  There was no cohesion, plus it required double the visits.  Maybe it was just the situation at the time.  At any rate, the neurologist is on top of things now and we are seeing tiny results now.
About ten years ago, dad was working on a large home project out on the flats in Delta when he first noticed he was having a problem with saliva and swallowing. He knew something was wrong, but was unaware at the time that this was one of the first signs of Parkinson's. For years he carried around a handkerchief to deal with the issue; chewing gum sometimes helped as well. Looking back, the drooling became very bad, though I cannot quite remember when. When we were in the neurologist office the first time in Sydney, he offered Botox injections for the drooling. We had never heard of it before... and to find out there could be respite from this annoying Parkinson's side effect, well... it felt like a gift!

We had a follow up appointment to the Exelon patch last week, so dad was given the Botox injections in his jaw at that time. It takes about two days to 'take' and there should be some noticeable change in a week. It lasts approx 4 months. I was tempted to ask for a shot for the worry lines between my brows. Next time.
The Exelon patch seems to be giving some assistance in the memory department. The doctor asked about memory and I said dad seemed to be retaining a bit more information. He asked about the hallucinations... was dad still 'building things'? (See... it helps to chatter on about random things, as I am prone to do.) I paused a minute before realizing that dad hasn't been as wonky as he could be. Dad piped up and said, 'The hallucinations haven't been as bad, that's for sure.' (Huh? There he goes... following along when I least expect it!) Turns out that the reduced hallucinations are a good sign that the patch is working... and that it does help with the hallucinating... another pleasant result.

Post doctor visit... we walked down the street to have coffee and lunch at a cafe in Darlinghurst. Dad had a tissue in his hand and had offhandedly asked me to throw it out. I didn't really pay attention, thinking he still needed it.  As we walked past a garbage can, he fired the tissue into the side opening! I about fell over laughing! He had sat there in his chair, scouting out a trash can. Seeing one, he let go with his garbage! Bulls eye! He never ceases to surprise me!!