New to this (or any other) forum. I have been a private professional caregiver for a 91 yr. old female for the last 4 1/2 yrs. She was diagnosed with SCC appx. 2 yrs ago.
As she is in her advanced years, she chose to not go through with surgery or radiation. She was put on hospice. After appx. 5 months she was taken off, because of her very slow decline. We are now in the process of going back on hospice (1 1/2 years later!) I'm looking for information on what to expect in these end stages, so we will be able to give her the best care possible.

Welcome to OCF. Im very sorry to read about your patient. We have a section devoted to those patients who are terminal or have passed away. A couple of our caregivers have written about end of life situations. Its going to take me a while to find it but I know its here somewhere.

Blue Heron, welcome to the forum. I'm sorry your patient isn't doing well. I would look out for signs of pneumonia -- shaking (not from cold), vomiting, difficulty breathing, and a temperature (though not necessarily so). If she is mobile and walks, please be very, very careful that she doesn't fall. We were told that even when a patient seems to be unresponsive, he/she can hear what's being said' so be careful about what she hears . It is, of course, important for people that she loves to keep talking to her even though she does not look like she is responsive. If she is given painkillers like hydromorphone, look out for signs of delirium.

This is what I can recall for now. I will post again if anything more comes back to me.