My mother is in a nursing home and suffering from severe dehydration. Apparently the staff has not been monitoring her fluid intake. She was diagnosed with a UTI a month ago. Her doctor put her on an IV but she keeps pulling the IV line out. Now the staff is asking us to come and stay with her to make sure she does not continue to do that. My sister and I are the only ones who live in the same state and we both work full-time. We cannot just leave our jobs whenever we want. We both go to the nursing home after work and stay until 9 p.m. but we cannot do that during the day. The nursing home is insisting we hire a visiting nurse to monitor her and this is at the family's expense. Has anyone dealt with this before? I suggested putting a mitt on her hand or a glove of some sort. Surely the nursing home can come up with a solution. And we are very angry that they let her get so dehydrated in the first place. How much time does it take to make sure she drinks a cup of water every hour or so? My sister and I are beyond frustrated. For the weekend it is going to cost almost $5000 and how are we going to ensure that this doesn't happen again in the future?
My mother stopped trying to pull out the IV, but still does not want to eat or drink. Once the IV is removed, I'm afraid she'll just get dehydrate again. She just hates being at the nursing home and it's getting worse. I think in her own way she is intentionally winding down. It's very sad.
How long is the IV supposed to be used? Might it be cheaper for you and/or your sister to take a day off work to be with Mom?
What would the nursing home do if Mom had not relatives in the state?
avoidablecare/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Sharpe-Handbook-A-Caregivers-Guide-to-Advance-Dementia.pdf
You might also ask if her doctor can write an order that explains why restrains are necessary.
See page 10 that addresses your situation.
http://www.aging.ca.gov/programs/ltcop/improving_dementia_care/docs/restraints_the_exception_not_the_rule.pdf
Might clothing that covered the IV tube work for your mom?
It would seem to me that keeping a resident hydrated would be a basic responsibility of a nursing home, so I don't blame your anger.
Will Mom's insurance cover the extra expense during her convalescence? How long is she expected to be on the IV? Can mother afford this?