Hi all,
I hope all is well. I am going to do my best to make this quick and brief... I am overwhelmed. I am doing my best to locate resources to help my parent move to a safer home. The nursing home that they are in is a locked facility there is no windows my strong parent has survived 10 years in this place it has been an uphil downhill battle.
As of recent My parent has been having cuts and now an unexplained swollen eye lid. My parent also seem very dissociated and extremely agitated. There is so much else I can say but I want to keep this short because I need to move them out of here due to all these incidents and staff being very hostile. I am considering moving them to Adult Foster Care where my parent can finally be in a home and have more one on one care instead of being in a large institution...
I just cannot stomach another nursing home every time I visit my parent, I become extremely sad because I see a lot of sufferings. I think adult foster care maybe better for them, so they don't have to be in another hospital or locked place. Has anyone ever chosen this route before? Thanks Also I may need to make other posts cause it's just so much other stuff going on and I am just wanting to do the best thing for them. It's a lot of navigation.
I am finding it difficult to believe there are no windows.
Maybe the windows can not be opened and this would be done for safety. You do not want someone getting out or in.
And if you are using the term "nursing home" are they actually in a Skilled Nursing facility or are they in a Memory Care facility.
BIG difference.
If the parent needs a Skilled Nursing facility I do not think you would find a group or foster home that would be equipped to manage their care.
A Memory Care facility would not be able to take a resident that has "tubes" or many will not take a resident that is on oxygen as that requires a more restrictive environment.
There are far fewer Group or Foster homes as the restrictions are stringent.
You could do a search for what you are looking for just put in the area you wish to be in.
do know that you can contact the Ombudsman and file complaints. Medicare website also has ratings and evaluations of facilities in your area.
Do you realize that if there is a POA in charge of Moms care, the staff talks to them only. They cannot talk to you about why parent has a swollen eye. You need to ask that question of the POA. Cuts? Are they really tears? As we age our skin gets thinner and tears very easily. Not much staff can do about it.
And if they're now living in a locked facility it means that one or both of your parents have dementia, as only memory care units are kept locked for the patients safety and to keep them from wandering off.
Like Geaton said below I would make sure that you're documenting any suspected abuse and address these issues with the head of the facility, the ombudsman and if need be Adult Protective Services.
And of course the POA has the final say in what goes on with your parents here, and even if this person gets them moved to a different place, you must remember that sadly the grass isn't always greener on the other side, especially in Medicaid facilities.
However, you should take pictures of the injuries and make written (email) requests for the PoA and facility to explain these incidents, which I think require reporting (either internal or to APS).
If you don't get satisfaction you can yourself report it to APS or talk to an ombudsman. Make sure everything is documented.
I'm so sorry for this distressing situation. Please know you will most likely need to work with the PoA to change the facility. You won't be able to afford it. Are your parents on Medicaid? If so, this also may discount a foster care arrangement. Please do your research and have tempered expectations.
I will continue to do research on this option for adult foster care. Also have spoken to ombudsman. I am waiting on a call back from my states dept of aging. I will have to do more research on this option and work with their POA to get them to safety.