Long story short.... My dad came down with something that has basically attacked his brain and left him currently in need of 24hr care. He went from a completely healthy 61yr old 3 months ago, to bad, to improved, to bad, to better again, to now drastically downhill cognitively and physically. The neurologists have no explanation of the cause and have done multiple tests more than once in their search for answers. The hospital has said that medically they don't need him there to observe him even though he continues to decline daily and they have no idea of his future. They will continue their tests on an outpatient basis. I do think they are doing a good job in his care even though I don't necessarily agree that he doesn't need to be there to figure it out. Right now he can't do any normal living activities by himself. Last week I was comfortable with hiring someone to watch him at his house during the day but the drastic decline over the weekend means he now needs to be somewhere and cared for 24hrs. He has no insurance and even less money but temporarily I can make it work until his VA pension/disability can come in. So if anyone has experience with a nursing home or extended care facility that they can recommend, let me know and I'll add it to my list of visits.
I'm sorry to hear that. I hope things get better and you get it all sorted out. I wish I could remember the place I've been to/volunteered at, but it was so long ago. I'd imagine there are a good amount of options out there for you. I wish you and your father the best.
Hang in there; this isn't a fun time by any means, but you can get through it. My dad was in a Manor Care (can't remember which one, but it sucked) before we moved him to Westbury Place (closer to my mom, but sucked even worse) before we moved him to St. Dominic Village (caters mostly to Catholics, but they were SO much better there). My mom ended up at Clarewood House. Although it is in the Sharpstown area, that place was really nice (relative to the earlier ones my dad was in). I don't know if they will have the level of skilled nursing your dad might need, but they might be worth checking out.
Seems like you need LTAC hospital (long term acute care) Kindred & Triumph are "popular" ones or google ltac houston for some other options
So first off goto the nurse at the current hospital and ask to a social worker. This person. Is the man with the plan when it comes to this stuff. Secondly it sounds like your dad may be a hospice case as opposed to a long term care case.
Thanks guys, Clarewood House is one of the places I've been looking at, it looks like they have a special care unit that could meet his needs. I've looked at LTAC hospitals but with no insurance that may be way above what I'm able to get him in. The doctors don't think it's life-threatening so a hospice probably isn't the right place. Of course they don't know what exactly is going on either.
The VA has on site LTAC and a nursing home. If he has benefits, you may want to contact them as well. Discuss with the hospital social worker.
That was my first question to the social worker when it became clear they were looking to push him out. They don't have anything on site dealing with cognitive issues only LTAC related to physical rehabilitation. The closest VA nursing home is near Austin but he isn't covered with benefits yet so right now I may as well keep him close.
I would say your best bet is to speak to an attorney about powers of attorney, directive to physicians and a will - if he has neither. You may as well set it up that way if his cognitive abilities comeback you will have everything setup and can explain it to him. Thus, if you do have powers of attorney I would suggest contacting an attorney to see if they can get him on Medicaid and protect some of his assetts - house, car, machinerey, etc - if he has any. As far as nursing homes go, if you want to do this on your own there are some good places in the Clear Lake/League City Area like Regent Care Center, Windsong Village or Manor Care.
Well I've volunteered this past semester at an assisted living care facility, being assigned to a resident. Obviously they lose a bit of their freedom but they still do a pretty good job of meals, housing, and medications. But from what I heard, they go anywhere from 3-8k a month I think