Today, my brother finally got two teeth pulled. This has been a long time coming. Due to lots of other caretaking responsiblities, his mouth was put on the backburner for years. When he finally moved into a nursing home that had a visiting dentist, he finally got his teeth cleaned, and it turned out he needed two teeth pulled to prevent infection.
It seemed like a good idea to me so we went forward with it. Unfortunately, rather than raise taxes in Illinois, our state legislature cut off dental work from Medicaid. So I am going to have to private pay for the work. It's necessary, so we did it.
Meanwhile, he came back with instructions to eat soft food, so he has taken it into his head he can't have anything for dinner. I am going to have to call the nurse tomorrow and make sure that they are aware he is not eating and supervise his intake.
It's always something with him.
Thursday, October 24, 2013
Saturday, October 5, 2013
hoarding
I took my brother out for breakfast today. While I was there I looked for his pants. It turns out they were in his closet after all. I was relieved.
He was still grumpy today and looked a little short of breath. I will call the new nurse practitioner on Monday and go over my brother's medical history.
When I was looking for his pants, I opened up several of his drawers and they were crammed with old New York Times. The basket for his walker was so crammed with old magazines that I couldn't fold it to get it into the car. So when we got back to the nursing home, I sat down with him and persuaded him to get rid of anything in his walker published before September 2013. He even had a magazine form 2012!
Not to mention 4 bananas, but they looked fairly fresh. When I said I would take one home to eat, he wouldn't let me!!
This week we have a CARE meeting (a meeting held every 3 months with nursing home staff to discuss his situation) and I will bring up the hoarding.
When he is disagreeable, it puts my nerves on edge, and the visit is not enjoyable. I suspect there are two reasons for his bad mood: he is getting stir crazy and he may not be feeling well. I will try to take him to the movies or somewhere this weekend.
He was still grumpy today and looked a little short of breath. I will call the new nurse practitioner on Monday and go over my brother's medical history.
When I was looking for his pants, I opened up several of his drawers and they were crammed with old New York Times. The basket for his walker was so crammed with old magazines that I couldn't fold it to get it into the car. So when we got back to the nursing home, I sat down with him and persuaded him to get rid of anything in his walker published before September 2013. He even had a magazine form 2012!
Not to mention 4 bananas, but they looked fairly fresh. When I said I would take one home to eat, he wouldn't let me!!
This week we have a CARE meeting (a meeting held every 3 months with nursing home staff to discuss his situation) and I will bring up the hoarding.
When he is disagreeable, it puts my nerves on edge, and the visit is not enjoyable. I suspect there are two reasons for his bad mood: he is getting stir crazy and he may not be feeling well. I will try to take him to the movies or somewhere this weekend.
Friday, October 4, 2013
furlough
I'm on government furlough, so the first full day I had off I took advantage of to visit my brother. He seemed a bit grumpy, and kept on making comments about the fact that he wasn't a cripple and not disabled. I'm not sure where it was coming from.
The nursing home has managed to lose his brand new pants, it's always something that I have to follow up on.
His oral surgeon appointment was finally made by the caretaker I pay to help me manage his medical issues. Her mother just passed away and it took her a while to get back on her feet. My brother, husband and I sent her a condolence card, but when I told him there was a delay in gettting the appointment he was not very understanding.
Nonetheless, he seemed to enjoy the sunshine at the outdoor restaurant I took him to. The main challenge is to keep him stimulated, it's pretty difficult to do it even for an hour, not to mention 24/7.
The nursing home has managed to lose his brand new pants, it's always something that I have to follow up on.
His oral surgeon appointment was finally made by the caretaker I pay to help me manage his medical issues. Her mother just passed away and it took her a while to get back on her feet. My brother, husband and I sent her a condolence card, but when I told him there was a delay in gettting the appointment he was not very understanding.
Nonetheless, he seemed to enjoy the sunshine at the outdoor restaurant I took him to. The main challenge is to keep him stimulated, it's pretty difficult to do it even for an hour, not to mention 24/7.
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