Julie McFadden, an end-of-life nurse who runs the Hospice Nurse Julie YouTube channel, has weighed on the tragic death of Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsy Arakawa

End-of-life nurse Julie McFadden recently opened up about the tragedy(Image: hospicenursejulie/Instagram )

A palliative care nurse has commented on the heart-rending death of legendary Hollywood star Gene Hackman, spotlighting the vital need for a “support system”.

The esteemed actor, aged 95, along with his spouse Betsy Arakawa, 65, were discovered deceased in separate rooms of their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, back in February.

The cause of Arakawa’s death was pinpointed as hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS), a rare respiratory condition that comes from exposure to rodents.

About seven days later, Hackman succumbed to coronary artery disease, with advanced Alzheimer’s suspected as an additional factor, as the BBC has reported. Tragically, one of their dogs was also found dead in a crate.

Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa were sadly found dead in their home(Image: Getty Images)

In a recent video, Julie McFadden, a nurse with expertise in caring for patients at the end of their lives and who manages the Hospice Nurse Julie channel on YouTube, opened up about the sorrowful event, asserting this scenario is not unfamiliar to her professional experience.

She reflected: “This is a tragic, tragic ending. Now, the reason why I bring it up is because I see this so often on hospice.

“Now, thankfully, I don’t see a lot of people dying because of this, but I see when there is one caregiver, who is trying to care for someone who is also elderly and sick themselves.

“When a family doesn’t have a support system, this is the kind of tragedy that can happen. And I am not victim-blaming here. I’m not blaming Betsy or blaming Gene or blaming the family.”

She emphasised that there was “no blame here” and used the incident as a teaching moment to illustrate that a caregiver cannot be the “only one”. Julie provided a number of practical suggestions for anyone who finds themselves in a similar situation or anticipates they might be in the future.

Julie highlighted the incident to teach people that a caregiver can’t be the “only one” (Image: hospicenursejulie/Instagram )

Julie advised ensuring that at least one person checks in on you at least once a week, particularly if you’re feeling under the weather. She added that this could be as simple as a phone call, but it’s crucial to have some form of contact with someone outside your household.

Next, Julie recommended asking someone else to step in and care for the individual occasionally to give yourself a respite; this could be on a monthly, bi-monthly or weekly basis. Alternatively, she suggested consulting a social worker for advice on how to get out of the house every now and then.

She underscored the importance of striving to “get as much community around us” as possible, proposing that it’s a “call for all of us” to extend a hand to others. Julie added that we need to ask for help and support each other.

The NHS says there is a range of support options for people with care and support needs, including paid carers, meals at home, home adaptations, gadgets and equipment, and housing options, such as care homes.

You can access an NHS guide via the website here. If you’re looking after somebody with dementia, visit the website here.