Since July 24, Bill and I have done
our best to obtain the best care possible for Mom and Dad. There have been many
more bumps in the road than we would have liked - here is a recap of our
efforts in the last 5 1/2 months:
- Locating a residence that would provide appropriate care for them that was near to both us and Dave and Casey (Delmar Gardens)
- Convincing Dad to give a move to Georgia a try
- Coordinating the move on July 24 (thank you to everyone of you who helped this happen). Completing extensive paperwork that was comparable to a first mortgage closing.
- Working with the staff at Delmar Gardens to help them acclimate as much as possible
- Dealing with Dad's long hospitalization and confusing diagnosis (UTI? congenital heart failure?)
- Dealing with Mom who was separated from him for the first time in 63 years of marriage and was increasingly agitated and upset being alone
- Learning that Dad would not be able to go right back to Delmar Gardens until he went to rehabilitation, only to learn further that no rehab center would accept him due to the fact that he had been restrained in the hospital
- Scrambling and calling anyone I could think of who might suggest where he could live as the hospital was pressuring us to get him out, and saying we would be "private pay" if we didn't get him out of the hospital
- Learning of Hope Memory care through Senior Provisions, who said they would take him with little question and who accepted him THE VERY NEXT DAY (more paperwork)
- Keeping Mom company at Delmar while she was separated from Dad, especially at bedtime when she was the most upset and unable to settle
- Moving Mom in to Hope in a week's time
- Learning that Mom climbed out of the window after one week and that Hope recommended she be admitted to Eastside Behavioral Hospital to be medicated for her safety and peace of mind - she was there for two weeks
- Signing up Dad for Embrace hospice for additional support for his congestive heart failure. Embrace provides additional services to compliment those provided by Hope, including providing equipment such as hospital beds, wheelchairs, diapers, cleaning supplies, weekly chaplain visits, bathing and dressing services, and weekly visits and care from a registered nurse who specializes in palliative care. All of this is paid for by Medicare.
- Meeting with an attorney who specializes in qualifying veterans for VA "Aid & Attendance" benefits in order to help them receive these tax-free benefits. This required a great deal of paperwork, most of which is completed, but am still waiting for the physician form to be completed by Embrace Hospice.
- Returning Mom to Hope after 2 weeks and trying to get her medications regulated so she was more comfortable but not "doped up"
- Signing up Mom for hospice for additional support.
- Dealing with Mom's unexplicable decline in December due to an apparent medication mixup. She has improved a great deal
- Meeting with Hope and Embrace Hospice representatives to try to improve communication between them, each other, and with the family.
- Hiring Sam as a sitter to help out with Mom and Dad while we were out of town for 10 days.
