My father is currently at a rehab. He has good upper body strength and can stand, but is very unsteady when walking with a walker. We have one week left at this rehab, and I'm trying to decide which type of transfer equipment would be best.
He will be returning home to live with my 80 y/o mother with home health assistance. The rehab has recommended a Hoyer lift for transfers, as it is safer. I am afraid that he will then likely lose some of the strength he has.
My father is at the stage that he prefers to do the least amount of work. He prefers to poop in his diapers and have someone wipe him vs. get assistance to go to the bedside commode. Not sure which route to go when trying to transfer him.
If your dad has good strength in his legs and is able to support himself then the Sit To Stand is in my opinion easier. the belt/harness is easier to put on and attach to the equipment. With the Hoyer the sling can be involved and awkward to put on.
If the Rehab has BOTH pieces of equipment let them demonstrate both and allow you to try them. They may not allow you to try them with him or anyone in or on it but you would get the idea.
If you go with the Hoyer Lift get 2 slings a MESH SHOWER sling and a SPLIT LEG sling. I think that was easier than the full body sling. Again that was my opinion of all the slings I tried.
If he is progressing you can set up a medical team evaluation and request additional days if the Medical team will write in their evaluation they have determined that with additional PT his progression will continue. It usually is a 50% copay but if it helps with his mobility it is well worth the money.
The continued Rehab will allow more time for him to regain mobility and be easier on the caregiver when he is discharged.
You and whoever is healthcare proxy will have to be assertive and may have to appeal directly to Medicare. The rehab facility is required to give you Mediciare appeal contact information. I appealed and won four cases for my uncle for him to receive the max of 100 days Medicare allows.
He is not likely to improve. He will only become more dependent. Especially if he's at a point now where he'd rather poop in his diaper and let someone else take care of him. He's beyond willing to try and get stronger, more independent.
Unless you can hire 2 caregivers 24 hrs a day, he should not be at home, where your mother will end up struggling with his needs.
By saying he is unsafe, you can ask if he still qualifies to remain in rehab until such time as he gets his act together or he might be looking at a future of LTC. In the right instances, he can remain up to 100 days but there will be a daily upcharge which the social worker can determine from the type of insurance he has.
Rehabs are beholden under laws to hold discharge planning conferencing that includes family members/caregivers prior to discharge.
Call the Social Worker or Discharge planner today and ask to be included in a session in which prior to discharge safe transfers are discussed and demonstrated. Let them know this is crucial to home care. You can learn a lot on "safe transfer to chair" from youtube and bing videos, but you really need hands on. And an understanding of how some tippy equipment can actually constitute another hazard.
Wishing you the best of luck.
Good luck.
Also, the stage where your father is may be where he stays, or lower. What you are telling us - "he prefers to poop in his diapers" - is a big red flag. That is not likely to change. The home health assistance you're planning may not be enough. For instance, if he goes home as a two-person transfer, will you be able to have two trained people be to be there all the time? A Hoyer lift is a piece of machinery that you can't learn while swinging an 88-year-old man around in it!
If you and mom are thinking that you want to be with him to assist or to change his diapers, okay, but be aware that you will get tired of that really really fast. Especially as you will be wanting him to get better so he can take a bigger part in his recovery, and he will literally be unable to do that. You may resent this and become impatient with him.
I see a skilled nursing facility in your dad's future. I'm sorry, but that's how these situations usually go.