My mom in memory care needs extra assistance. Can you recommend something?

katherine4

Hi there,

My mom is in a memory care assisted living facility. Up until a few weeks ago she was somewhat ambulatory. She needed some assistance sitting and standing but could walk with a walker. Since then she has developed what seems to be a resistant UTI, she is on her third round of antibiotics, and she is not able to sit up on her own, or stand or walk. I am hoping that she will improve soon, but in the meantime my issue is this:

She needs more intensive time and attention than the staff is giving her at this point, but I really don't want to move her to a questionable nursing facility. There aren't many in the area, and I don't believe any of them have a stellar reputation. So what are my options? Should I be hiring a private nurse's aide or something like that to come to the ALF? If so, what can i expect to spend on this and where do I find someone trustworthy?

Thank you for reading and for your help!

mommyandme (m&m)

Maybe you don’t need a nurses aide which is medical and possibly more expensive?   Maybe a home care company can work with you.  They’re non medical but they can assist with toileting, companionship, feeding, reminder of meds etc…  Our helpers will feed my mom her meds in yogurt that I’ve prepared prior to them coming over.  A lot of people hire in companion caregivers for their LOs at MCs.  I’d plan on $20-30/hr depending on your search.  Care.com can have some good applicants that sometimes might be less expensive than a Home Care Service. 

If it was me I’d probably call for a hospice evaluation due to her decline.  

Just my 2¢

GothicGremlin

Like mommyandme, I have a home health aide who comes in three times a week to help my sister.  It's mostly for companionship at this point, but my sister is starting to be less ambulatory, and walking arm in arm with her keeps her a little steadier on her feet.  $20-30 an hour sounds about right, although the aides that I use are closer to $20 than $30.  I also use them to pick up personal care supplies if I'm short on time.

Rescue mom

My mom and many others in her MC facilities had private aides who came in a few hours daily, in addition to the facility staff. The staff was good, but they are human and can’t do one-on-one for very long. The aides were not rn nurses, but they were all experienced in working with late-stage dementia needs. I found mine through the facility (the private  aides worked there regularly).:others found thru care.com or word-of-mouth. Costs were about $25-30 an hour in my area.

zauberflote

I'm with the home care aide folks. MIL had 24/7 care at her home for her last five years. When my mom had a period of recovery from hip surgery, in her MC (the recovery that is!), we hired CNA's for night times for a couple of weeks. That way we knew if something came up and she (of course) didn't pull the emergency cord by her bed, someone was already in the room to soothe, calm, and provide toileting or whatever immediately.