h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

My uncle Joe was a mean sober former drunk, and we constantly worried about how his sweet tempered Pennsylvanian Dutch wife could carry on with him. She did not know how to write a check even and he controlled all the finances. I don't think that he had dementia, he was just really mean tempered. He ended up living in a Catholic nursing home with nuns and I don't know how the coped with him. I wonder how many of them burned out as they all had their share of cantankerous patients to contend with.

Oh sorry, thought i'd subscribed to this thread, otherwise I would have replied by now. I don't know much about nuns but I gather they can be pretty fierce if the need arises. When my paternal grandfather was in hospital shortly before his death he mortified my father with his comments to some of the non-white nurses. I think the patience of a saint is a given if you work in care, but equally my wife (who used to work in care homes) always said that she'd have burnt out eventually if she hadn't left.

Well I'm glad your wife had experience dealing with medical types before. I think it helps to know what questions to ask them as some of them are clueless about volunteering decent information.