Alexandra Posted February 18, 2010 Share Posted February 18, 2010 Thanks for the thoughtful replies as to why it might not be a good idea to have a family member be under Hospice care. Everyone seemed to have such great things to say about the organization. It was so helpful! My fil was evaluated yesterday and the RN said that he did not qualify for Hospice. She said that he was not far enough along. I wondered how they determine this? It seems like "not far enough along" in an Alz patient would be pretty subjective. Anyway I suppose this is good news. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted February 18, 2010 Share Posted February 18, 2010 Look back at Kalamanak's post under your other thread. It did a good job of describing the things they look at in order to evaluate "how far along" he is. When the time comes, it will be good to know that you have hospice available for him. In the meantime, I would get to know the hospital or nursing home social worker. They should be able to give you advice and help even now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Splungeman Posted February 18, 2010 Share Posted February 18, 2010 Remember, the goal of Hospice is to manage symptoms to keep the patient comfortable. If the patient is still eating well and showing no signs of immediate decline, they might not qualify. With dementia it's especially hard to quantify decline, because there is no real measurable value to check. With cancer patients or CHF patients you have lab tests that provide a way to measure the decline. Alzheimer's is tricky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suzanne115 Posted February 18, 2010 Share Posted February 18, 2010 What about other home health care agencies? My grandmother was taken off of hospice recently, and my mom now receives help from Home Health Care. You might talk to doctors or social workers and see what else is available. Home health isn't as helpful as hospice, but it is still a valuable service for a caregiver. Good luck and blessings, it is difficult to have a loved one suffer from Alzheimers. I personally believe Hospice needs to reconsider how they determine which of those type patients qualify and which do not. Suzanne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clementine Posted February 18, 2010 Share Posted February 18, 2010 With my FIL, Hospice would only come in when he had approx. 3 months to live - when my MIL couldn't do it all by herself. It is such a wonderful organization - they were incredibly kind and compassionate. Definitely angels in the time of need! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexandra Posted February 18, 2010 Author Share Posted February 18, 2010 Look back at Kalamanak's post under your other thread. It did a good job of describing the things they look at in order to evaluate "how far along" he is. When the time comes, it will be good to know that you have hospice available for him. In the meantime, I would get to know the hospital or nursing home social worker. They should be able to give you advice and help even now. Falls, infection, aspirations....were some of the factors that she mentioned. My fil has had all 3 in the last 10 months. In the last 12 months he has had MRSA, broken hip from a fall, UTI, pnemonia twice, the most recent was aspirational and required a 1 week hospital stay. He no longer knows where he or who he is. He cannot feed himself and is having trouble swallowing. (He is in a nursing home.) I am not really arguing the decision (ok maybe I am) but how low does one need to go to get in with Hospice? I was not the one to broach the subject of Hospice. His doctor was, but once I found out about Hospice, it just really made me want that extra layer of care for this poor, ailing man. KWIM? I am the main go-to person for both mil and fil. MIL has mid-level dementia btw. Thanks for your post and thoughts Jean and everyone else. Not trying to be a whiner here.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Splungeman Posted February 18, 2010 Share Posted February 18, 2010 Try a different hospice, perhaps? Some only approve people who are right there at the end. Sounds like he'd definitely qualify for the company I work for. But then, it might just be your state has different qualifiers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KristenS Posted February 19, 2010 Share Posted February 19, 2010 I ditto the suggestion to check with other home health agencies. My neighbor used one for her husband, who passed away this past month. He was declining from Parkinson's, slowly at first and then very rapidly near the end. Not sure he would have passed a hospice check earlier on, but she definitely needed the help. And then the same nurse stayed on to help her with her sudden cancer diagnosis and surgery, after her husband passed. So that became a blessing all around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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