nursing homes

[Harrie Calvor]

To be quite honest, nursing homes are total hell. No allowance of almost everything and horrible staff make misery come to happen. Another reason why “god” is totally fucking stupid.

[jakelafort]

I have a different perspective.  People go there to die.  And in spite of the grim reality i have on balance observed workers who go above and beyond in establishing relationships with patients and thereby making end days more bearable. The places i have observed the workers are underpaid and overworked.

[Reg the Fronkey Farmer]

I have visited people in various homes over the years. I found the staff to be very caring and passionate and with a genuine love and concern for the people they were minding.

I did once hear one staff member say that without her faith that she could never even go to work because she hated to see people die that she “knew” would not go to Heaven (i.e. they would go to Hell).

That comment has stuck with me. I find it very vulgar and if I am ever to spend my last days in one I would demand that no deluded person like that come near me. It reminds me of something Hitchens once said.

[PopeBeanie]

jakelafort wrote:

The places i have observed the workers are underpaid and overworked.

I knew this and had compassion for workers, but it was still hell at times for us when sometimes felt they had to lie to cover their asses just for small mishaps. My mom got “c diff” while in care a couple years ago which a new, nasty bowel infection that a lot of the staff was unaware of, and untrained in how to keep it from spreading. After a few days of ignoring a contaminated wheelchair, I finally wheeled it up to the front desk and told them about it, and the full-blown nurses who understood the ramifications FREAKED OUT! Fortunately for other patients, Mom was already properly quarantined, and any staff coming in donned disposable suit, gloves, and mask. They just ignored that damn wheelchair with the postit notes on it until I made a fuss. (One of those postits actually said “Got Poop?”, which I saw the humor in, but the lady sticking on the postits clearly did not understand the risk.)

Anyway, yeah, there was also that ongoing irony of workers and nurses thanking God for when things worked out well, but never a word about God when it went to shit. Except of course at death, then we hear God is good again and he/she’s in a better place.

 

[Glen D]

Here in Australia they are called ‘aged care  facilities’ and are heavily subsidise by the government .This gives the government considerable control over all aspects of the facilities. from number and qualification of staff to the physical standard of the rooms.

The genera public perception sees “Aged Care Facilities” as ” God’s waiting room”

Both of my parents  died in such a facility, my dad after 5 years  in care. Mum after only one year.

I have a lot of first hand experience at choosing the facilities and was soon aware of the quality of say the food, cleanliness, medical care and attitudes of staff. Here there are no set visiting hours in most facilities .I went at very different times, sometimes at lunch time, to check the food..

I was satisfied that my parents were receiving high quality care and as important, the staff were caring and patient.

Each designated are has a registered nurse duty 24/7. But yes, enrolled nurses and other staff are not well paid. Fortunately  many of the staff are from overseas, from cultures in which  the elderly are treated with respect and caring.

My mother had high mental acuity until 2 days before she died and hated being there; it’s a huge change and loss of control over one’s life.

I’m 71. The men in my family tend to develop arteriosclerosis  in their early 70’s. There’s a chance I may need to go into care within the next 5 years. Or not, geriatric medicine has come a long way in the last 30 years.

Here, the better facilities require a refundable deposit ranging from say $250,000 –up to over a million.  I own my house, that will be used to pay my way into a decent facility. I dread it.

• This reply was modified 6 years, 11 months ago by Glen D.

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