When Dottie Phillips, the healthy 85-year-old mother-in-law of one of us (Amy), broke her elbow, the orthopedist did a wonderful job surgically repairing the injury. Unfortunately, Dottie developed pneumonia in the hospital during her recovery, requiring powerful antibiotics. These led to a subsequent Clostridium difficile (C. diff) infection, which produced debilitating diarrhea. Her prolonged hospital stay caused her to become frail, so she was discharged to a rehab facility with an entirely new care team.
