I had a very good experience with the visiting RN who checked out my mom today. She answered all of our many questions and is taking immediate action in ordering the supplies I need (told me to stop paying out of my pocket). She was also kind, but firm with my mom. It's something I have to learn. Mom has a pressure ulcer on her hip, she agravates it every night getting into bed and sleeping on it, so it's not healing. It's now a deep tissue wound. She put in an order for a hospital bed, which I will keep in the LR. My mom won't like it, but tough. My mom has to make adjustments, and she's not good at change. I just have to stay firm, it's hard when it's your LO. Forget the fussing with Depends, just use a pad in her panties for her urinary incontinence. I learned more how to care for my mom in 2 hours than any visit to her PCP. The nurse scheduled a few more weeks of visiting nurses to keep an eye on her. As caregivers, we all know what a grueling task it is. I now feel more confident than ever before in the 4 months since I undertook this challenge. I pray that everyone in this community finds that special medical specialist that does for you what this nurse did for me.
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When it comes to actual hands-on patient care, nurses usually learn more by experience than from classroom instruction, So. if you can, choose a nurse who is a bit older and not a new graduate (new graduates have valuable up-to-date information, but may have little knowledge of the tried-and-true). Nothing beats experience.
My mom has home health and God blessed us to get a new RN who is a wealth of information and also kind, but firm when needed with my mom. He's given me so many useful tips that actually work for her feeding tube and helped us understand more about why she experiences some of the issues that she does. Some have solutions and some don't, but at least we understand why they are happening.
He relates well with her and also with me. He understands both our points of view and helps me be more empathetic while also acknowledging my challenges as the family caregiver.
Yes, a good care professional IS worth their weight in gold. After his first visit I called the agency and requested he be her permanent nurse which he now is!
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One thing I have to point out is a Hospital bed is very uncomfortable, even with an extra pad I bought.
You should try sleeping in it yourself before you make your mom.
My 97 yr old Dad has been sleeping in a nice electric recliner once his bed was harder fir him to get in and out and he prefers his recliner to his bed. He now only uses his bed to lay in while they change his Cathiter and while he he gets his bed baths.
He has gotten bed sores a couple times and it takes awhile like a month but they will go away.
Apply Butt Paste to the sore twice a day, AM and PM.
Do Not have her wear Diapers!
Let her only wear 100% Cotton undies, shorts, long pants, pajamas.
Let her continue to sleep in her bed but have extra pillows so she can sleep on the side without the sore.
Also, have the Nurse show you the easy way to move her while she's in bed by having her lay on a folded sheet that is used to move her which is on top of her regular bed sheet.
Also, you can Google most anything.
Remember, There Are No Dumb Questions.
Prayers
Love and Gratitude to all of you who are caring Nursrs.
They do the heavy lifting. Often times, they are easier to speak with and explain the situation more clearly.
I have I have learned most of what I know from the ones in the beginning who let me help and showed me the way! I make sure I tell them over and over - even moms PT OT Speech etc - I want them to know what a gift they are not just to me or mom but to the world - they need to hear this!
My in home nurses - wound care and therapies are the reason I am still able to give mom quality care - The good ones really are the superhero’s of the world in my eyes 😊
I love hearing these stories - thank you for sharing - 🌷
My mother's hospice nurse went to school for two years to get her degree, and she did more for my mother's health in the last six months than her doctors did for her in the past seven years. She was truly an angel, and she took both my mother and me under her wing. She knew early on in my mom's hospice experience that I was able to handle gruesome details, and she invited me to be there when she visited my mother and dressed the wounds on her legs and her pressure sore. (I REALLY hope your mother's sore heals, because my mom's never did and she had it for seven months. It's a horrific thing if it gets deep.)
Anyone who's good at science can become a doctor, but it takes a special type of person to become a nurse and no amount of school can teach compassion if it isn't already in that person's makeup.
So very happy that you have an ally in your caregiving.
The Nurse, CNA and other professional staff that came weekly, and the CNA 2 to 3 times a week were amazing.
I got the supplies I needed, the equipment that I needed, the education, support that allowed me to keep him at home and care for him in a safe way.
Yes they are angels.
As with all people there are some better than others and I am glad you got one of the angels.
Anyone working in the nursing profession should be there because they care and want to do the best for their patient. But said to say, its not always this way. Its a profession that pays very well and I think some are in the profession because of that.