daughter from California syndrome

noun

The situation where a long-lost distant relative arrives at the hospital where their dying elderly relative is being treated, and challenges the care which the patient is receiving as inadequate; the phenomenon is ascribed to guilt and denial.

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Meanings

noundaughter from California syndrome (uncountable)
  1. uncountableThe situation where a long-lost distant relative arrives at the hospital where their dying elderly relative is being treated, and challenges the care which the patient is receiving as inadequate; the phenomenon is ascribed to guilt and denial.
Cite this entry
APA

daughter from California syndrome. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/daughter%20from%20California%20syndrome

MLA

“daughter from California syndrome.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/daughter%20from%20California%20syndrome. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “daughter from California syndrome,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/daughter%20from%20California%20syndrome.

Source: daughter from California syndrome on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.