After a fall, an assessment was made, and it was recommended that she receive inpatient physical therapy. She lives with my husband and I and after seeing her decline in the last couple of months I'm wondering if she will be able to regain the strength needed to come back home. She wasn't injured in the fall but has been diagnosed with spinal stenosis and carpal tunnel in both hands making basic chores difficult for her. Standing and walking have worsened. I had to choose 6 facilities and the reviews are all over the map, from poor to excellent at the same facility. Any recommendations or supportive words to help me prepare? Thanks so much.
I have never heard of transferring someone from ER to Rehab. A patient usually has to be admitted into the hospital for 3 or 4 days for rehab to be suggested because of Medicare. They won't pay sooner than that. So, if Mom is on Medicare I would question the transfer unless she was in ER 3 days. Even then, I don't think ER counts as admitting a person. Now, I may be wrong, but I would question. Because if Medicare will not pay, its out of pocket for Mom.
I 100% agree with joining Nextdoor and seeking input from actual neighbors and your close-in community.
Let me preface where I ALWAYS go in these things. I am 82. I can personally guarantee you now that most falls are because of our balance. We just loose that lower brain portion that balances us. Want to know if your own is going? Stand on one foot, lift the other to knee. Close your eyes? Wobbly? Yeah, it coming. I am now about 145 pounds, heavier than ever in my life, yet when I stand on the bus now, I better hold on until that baby stops, because if not I feel like a feather in the winds. We just cannot recover our balance, we don't lift our feet well. Walkers are often something to trip over, carpal tunnel doesn't do well with canes, and I could go on. Placement in care won't make this better and so common are falls in ECF that most won't even call if you seem OK and didn't hit head or face.
As to the Rehab now? Yeah, it is tough for you to do anything but guess about which are best. People often are unhappy with the amount of actual PT and OT and I sure was with my brother. But they do by law have to include you and I would make it clear going in that you WANT to be included in care conferences. They will assess with you/for you, how mom is doing.
Only you can decide what future placement needs to be and why.
Falls will continue wherever she is. And falls are often the beginning of the end if there is any broken bones. Was for my own mom even without a broken bone. Just went from infection after catheterization to retaining urine to another infection, to pneumonia to another fall and so on until placement was necessary. She was then mid 90s and died in ECF on Hospice within weeks. Just too weakened to go on.
I am sorry. This is tough stuff you can only take a step at a time. Just be certain they know you are very involved and want to be. Ask if you are able to attend sessions where they work on balance. And balance exercises DID help my brother (Lewy's is notorious for balance problems); however, he never did them again after his release. Badgering never worked with him, hee hee, and didn't then.
Good luck. Hope you will keep us informed.
So pick the facility that you feel the best about and then once she's there you let them know that your mother can no longer return to your home as she's no longer safe there, and they will help you get her placed in the appropriate facility.
And if money is an issue, your mother can of course apply for Medicaid to help pay for her care.
Because you say that your mothers "standing and walking have worsened" you already know that she will continue to fall and that her care is now too much for you and your husband.
I wish you well in getting her placed in the right rehab facility and then getting her placed in the right facility.