Mom has been in a facility since December 23. She roams a lot and gets into peoples drawers & things. Her balance is very off with her Parkinson’s & is a fall risk (2-3 falls a week). We put her on Seroquel to help calm her as we thought maybe delusions were making her roam & get into things? Well it’s made her falls worse & are pulling back on dosages. The staff say she’s a huge risk for falls & they only have 2 CNA’s to 27 residents. They are asking us to get a sitter to be with her because they can’t manage her.
How in the world can dad afford a sitter 7am-7pm & $10k/ month for her care. That’s about $15K plus his cost of living alone. He had Medicare so they cover zero of this! What do we do? Senior elder attorney for guidance? Open to any info or experiences!!!
1. Don't put her in a place with such a terrible staff to patient ratio. That's dangerous in far more ways than merely regarding falls.
2. It's possible she should be in a wheelchair for her own safety if falls are such a major issue. My mother became wheelchair-bound not because she couldn't walk, but because it was unsafe for her to walk. She fell taking one step out of her bed and ended up with 28 stitches in her head after hitting the bedside table on the way down.
No nursing home can prevent falls no matter how many people work there. The important thing is to do what you can to minimize the danger of falls. If Mom is in that much danger, then I'd say the wheelchair is the way to go.
I was thinking an attorney would help determine dads assets and finances. I don’t understand how he just eliminates all his savings for her care then there’s nothing left for him when he she’s. He’s only 70. It’s scary to think about.
It might turn out that for the short-term it may be "better" to take her back into your home and privately hire a minder. This may be more affordable for now and a private hire can be any qualifications your father wishes at a lower hourly rate than someone from an agency. But best to discuss all options with a professional because there will be pro's and con's for any arrangement and there can be differing rules by state.