My mom is on hospice care because she has declined physically and has dementia. Because I can only visit one week a month, should I look into paying someone to be an advocate for her to make sure she’s getting the best care and attention possible or is that needed? I believe she’s in a good place but the hospice bath person noticed while I was there last week, that my mom’s diaper was unusually wet, suggesting that she hadn’t been changed recently. She told me this is the first time she’s seen this with my mom. She was going to talk to the staff nurse about it and make a few suggestions regarding another issue. She gives her a bath twice a week and looks her over very well and makes notes of any concerns. Since my mom has hospice care, I wonder if this is enough to make sure she’s getting the care she needs. Or would it also be better to pay someone to come in and spend time with her weekly to see if she’s getting the care she needs? Is this done? I wish I didn’t live so far away, but I do my best checking in on her daily on an Echo Show when I’m not there so I can see her and talk to her. I also communicate weekly with the MC director. My mom gets lonely sometimes but doesn’t want to get out of bed and spend time with other residents. So wondering if someone who visits would also help with that.
You can request a Volunteer visit mom 1 time a week.
A Volunteer is trained and if they notice anything out of the ordinary they will put that in their notes and it will be discussed during the Team meetings. Volunteers will note things like weight loss, increased coughing, disinterest, they will also make note if the person they are visiting discusses something that would be of interest to the Team. Anything critical is brought to the attention of a staff member immediately.
You could also request a visit from the Music therapist if mom likes music.
You can also request that the Social Worker visit more often. Typically a visit from the Social Worker would be 1 time a month.
A visit from the Chaplain would also be someone to keep an eye on mom for you.
All these people are trained to observe and pass on information that the Nurse, Doctor, CNA would need to be aware of.
Having hospice and the facility staff looking after your mother should be enough w/o the need for an extra caregiver to be with her, loneliness aside. If her brief is a bit too wet once in a while, oh well. That's not a life threatening situation, imo, and nothing to get too worked up about. If she's uncomfortable or needs/wants something, I imagine she herself could push the call button and ask.
I think you do quite a bit for your mom by calling her daily on Echo Show, checking in with the MC director and your brother who visits weekly. What more can be done, really, for a woman who's on hospice already? You can always ask her if she'd enjoy having a companion sit with her for a few hours every day, and see what she says.
Good luck!
TOO-WET BRIEFS’ CANNOT AND SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED!
If you want it to be for a while, make up an agreement and both sign in front of witnesses. That way everyone is aware of what is expected.
All I needed was someone to come in and drink coffee, talk to my sociable dad, and let him show her his garden. Later on, I needed her for longer hours and she became a lifelong friend.
But then, i did that in the mod-stages. Medicare will pay for a certain amount of hours a week. Check into that.
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