LIFE: The last few days have been interesting. Nothing bad happened and Kathy is actually doing pretty well considering she is in hospice. She is still able to let me know if she is comfortable; or not. Wet or not. She can open wide. And stick out her tongue for me to clean it. She has had a recurring bloodshot eye that… Read more →
Tag: hospice
Weather report
CAREGIVING: Sunday it rained like crazy. I watched the Patriot’s play Indianapolis later, but it was a “low biorhythm” day. For some reason a big weather change or passing front can give me a headache. It might be a change in the pressure that causes it. Beats me. I’m lucky it wasn’t snow. My snow blower is still sitting on the porch scaring the snow away. I… Read more →
Part 2: The Social Worker and the Minister
The Social Worker: On Monday Steve the social worker came back. Even though he came for the information session, Medicare requires him to visit as a social worker. Kathy slept through the whole meeting. He complimented me on how well I was taking care of Kathy. I guess we are the talk of the office. I think the key thing is… Read more →
Part 1: The Rabbi and the Traveller
A rabbi, a social worker and a minister walk into a house….. Mercy Hospice and other VNAs provide a lot of extra services besides skilled nursing. Annie, our nurse told me that the hospice chaplain and social worker would be paying us a visit. Medicare requires them to make a visit to see if there is anything we need. I asked if it was a… Read more →
H is for hospice (and hump day)
CAREGIVING: The roller-coaster of care-giving continues on its merry way. I put off posting because Kathy was going to start getting hospice services a week or two ago. At least I thought so. I want Kathy to be comfortable. Apparently, they need to have a prognosis of six months before you start hospice. My guess is that it has something to do with money: insurance or MediCare. If you… Read more →
Updates on the follow-ups
CAREGIVING: After Kathy’s appointment with Dr. Jackson a lot of ‘stuff’ has started happening. Or not, depending on how you look at it. A referral call was made to Baystate Hospice. The nurse left a message and was going to come over to do the intake. I called her back and told her that we were requesting palliative care, first. Also I told her,… Read more →
the Followup Visit and other news
CAREGIVING: Yesterday was Kathy’s followup visit with Dr. Jackson, her new primary doctor at Riverbend. The ambulance guys arrived on time. It was drizzling a little. I guess the ambulances are all equipped differently. This one used a tiny “stair chair” that looked more like an uncomfortable beach chair than medical equipment. It was similar to this blue one except I… Read more →