Eldercare update
So the plan, as I mentioned yesterday, was for Drew and I to visit his uncle Marvin in the nursing home. Drew's aunt and uncle came out from the city to join us. We picked them up at the train station, and headed over to the nursing home.
Marvin wasn't there!
He'd been sent to the hospital two days earlier. The paperwork at the nursing home identifies Drew as Marvin's caregiver, but when Marvin was sent to the hospital, no one called Drew. Can you imagine?
So we drive over to the hospital. He wasn't in his room, he'd been sent to another part of the hospital for treatment. The people at the nurses station said he was done with the treatment and would be returning to his room shortly.
He finally showed up an hour later.
And then there was the health care proxy confusion. Marvin named Drew his proxy several weeks ago, the social worker at the nursing home had Marvin sign the form. But the form didn't travel to the hospital with Marvin's chart, and no one had ever given a copy to Drew. When Marvin was admitted to the hospital, he told them Shelley was his contact person. So Drew had to make a few phone calls, and the nursing home was able to fax copies to the hospital and to Drew.
All the aggravation was worth it, though, to see the look of pure joy on Marvin's face when he saw the four of us.
The nurse in charge of that floor was able to tell us a lot about Marvin's current condition, and it isn't very good. In that respect, our visit was very upsetting. But overall, it was good that we went to visit him. He'll be 89 next month, he needs someone to take care of him, to make sure he's safe and comfortable. No one has paid much attention to him these past few years, and he's just so happy that someone is taking an interest.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Marvin wasn't there!
He'd been sent to the hospital two days earlier. The paperwork at the nursing home identifies Drew as Marvin's caregiver, but when Marvin was sent to the hospital, no one called Drew. Can you imagine?
So we drive over to the hospital. He wasn't in his room, he'd been sent to another part of the hospital for treatment. The people at the nurses station said he was done with the treatment and would be returning to his room shortly.
He finally showed up an hour later.
And then there was the health care proxy confusion. Marvin named Drew his proxy several weeks ago, the social worker at the nursing home had Marvin sign the form. But the form didn't travel to the hospital with Marvin's chart, and no one had ever given a copy to Drew. When Marvin was admitted to the hospital, he told them Shelley was his contact person. So Drew had to make a few phone calls, and the nursing home was able to fax copies to the hospital and to Drew.
All the aggravation was worth it, though, to see the look of pure joy on Marvin's face when he saw the four of us.
The nurse in charge of that floor was able to tell us a lot about Marvin's current condition, and it isn't very good. In that respect, our visit was very upsetting. But overall, it was good that we went to visit him. He'll be 89 next month, he needs someone to take care of him, to make sure he's safe and comfortable. No one has paid much attention to him these past few years, and he's just so happy that someone is taking an interest.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
It is incredible how many seniors end up with no one caring for them or about them. My good friend's husband had to go into a nursing home and she had to stay right on top of the staff. They weren't bad people but that's the way it was. It's sad that this even happened. Alana ramblinwitham.blogspot.com
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean. My dad was in a nursing facility a few years ago, for rehab. As wonderful as the staff was, they were very busy. My sisters learned how to do a lot of practical nursing so that they can keep him at home.
ReplyDelete