But over the weeks, well over the days, he [husband] started to get really, really poorly. And I called his GP and asked, you know, to check him over because he'd been in hospital and he hadn't been well and asked about the tablets, etc. And one particular one that I hadn't… I didn't know what it was… it was called risperidone. And I asked what was that was for and the GP said, “Look it's a very good drug for the trauma that [your husband] had been under”. At this point [my husband] was having eight milligrams a day of this particular drug. I don't know what it was for and I didn't know why he had to take it because there was no leaflet actually in the box when I brought them home. And so I didn't… I hadn't got a clue. So there I am giving him these tablets unbeknown to me, I'm actually poisoning him.
Anyway suddenly he started to… he had this stance about him…he wasn't very strong on his legs anyway. And suddenly his knees started to bend and his arms sort of came up to sort of head height with his hands in front, stiff. And his eyes were bulging out and pushing his glasses off his head.
So I had to get hold of the GP. And he my husband was in quite a state actually. So he had to be admitted to another hospital, a third hospital, where this risperidone drug was, they took two milligrams off on the Friday. He was taken in on a Friday, a Friday evening, where they took two milligrams off on the Friday. They took another two milligrams off on the Saturday, and they took two milligrams off on the Sunday and they took another two milligrams off on the Monday. So he was completely off this drug called risperidone. I then learned that risperidone is for acute schizophrenia and it's for paranoia.
And apparently the ICU notes that were sent to the main hospital, it was that this drug was to be checked daily. He should never have been on it after he came out of ICU. You know after say maybe a week, once he'd stabilised, I think maybe he should've been taken off then. But they just didn't. They carried on with them. And they gave me six weeks worth and said, “He must finish the course”, along with you know two lots of strong antibiotics. So his mind was gone really and… to be honest I was terrified this was going to permanent. I'm just touching wood and whistling that it's not permanent. He's back at work and he's fine. But that was through more luck than judgement. And I am going to blow my own trumpet here because I think the only reason my husband is still here is because I queried the tablets.
I think the strangest thing maybe is that I actually had to phone the GP and ask him to come and see [my husband] after he'd come out of hospital and I'm just a bit surprised that the GPs are not informed. |
