When he can't stand up anymore

Stori

My dad is 81 with dementia and heart failure.

He is in hospice at home. My mom (81) and myself ( I'm 50 and have severe treatment resistant depression and physical disabilities) care for him. Twice a week a nurse comes to check on him for 15 min.

He is no longer able to walk; he can stand briefly with a walker so we can change his depends and dress him. He insists on sleeping in the recliner that he sits in to watch TV. He refuses to sleep in his bed at night. He won’t even lay in bed so we can change him.

It's exhausting and painful for both of us to change him. We both have bad backs and knees with lifting restrictions.

Anyone have any suggestions? I don't know if there is room for a hoyer lift.

thanks

M1

Do you have a hospital bed? if not hospice can get him one. I would get rid of the recliner. He can prop up to watch TV in the hospital bed.

fmb

I second the hospital bed, both for his sake and yours. My DH has both ALZ and congestive heart failure, and the bed is used to keep his head and legs elevated so the lower body edema is somewhat controlled.

Does hospice send a bath aide to your home? DH has an aide come three days a week to give him a bed bath and change his clothes.

towhee

Eventually it will have to be a hospital bed. But if you cannot do that right now, so long as he is still able to stand, you might try a sit to stand lift. They usually have a smaller footprint than a hoyer lift, and it would be a little easier on your back, especially if hospice would spring for a power lift instead of a manual one.

mrsabaldwin

Hospital bed and lift. That’s what I have done for my mom. She wants to walk but always either falls when she tries on her own or ends up in a wheelchair when she is assisted. My husband will help me get her up but I usually use the lift for transfer between bed and recliner. Her bed does lower enough that she can sometimes slide just a little bit to stand and then sit down in a wheelchair.