The Knee Bone's Connected To ...
tsb

Such a face! Daddy Bones@ age 12, gracing the book's cover.

 

 How to Keep Your Sanity Intact When a Loved One Needs a Nursing Home  

It’s estimated that more than 50 million people provide care for a chronically ill, disabled or aged family member or friend during any given year.

Studies show that extremely stressed caregivers can age or die prematurely. 

“Bette Davis said ‘old age is no place for sissies,’ but caring for an older loved one isn’t for the feint of heart, either,” says Bones. “I loved my dad and we were very close, but the strain of ‘putting’ him in a nursing home was so overwhelming for all of us that I felt like I was on the edge of a nervous breakdown.”

Becoming aware of some of the don’ts” of long-term care can make daily life easier for nursing home residents and for their family caretakers,” she notes.

Bones offers some key examples from her Nursing Home Checklist:

· Ask clergy, family, and friends - especially those in the health care field - to recommend outstanding nursing homes.

· When touring a nursing home, ask other visitors for frank feedback about the facility. Don’t just inspect the “sample” room, look into residents’ rooms to check for cleanliness.

· Assure your loved one that you will be their ongoing advocate.

· Visit your loved one often and at varying times of the day - and night. This alerts all of the caregivers that you are keeping an eye on your loved one.

· Get to know the staff, especially your loved one’s immediate caregivers.

· Thank the employees for the thankless job that they do.

· Put your loved one’s name on all their belongings, including clothes and personal products. Never leave money or valuables in their room.

· Place a quilt, photos and other small touches to create a “homey” room.

· Put a brief bio and picture of your loved one at the entrance of their room to “introduce” them to staff and visitors.

. Bring old photos when you visit your loved one - it will give you something to look at if conversation lags.

. Bring different edible treats to spice-up the resident's menu.

 

 


 

 

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Monday
Sep212009

Other Than That...

DateMonday, September 21, 2009 at 03:49PM

You have to love the art of the understatement.

Last week, a defense lawyer said this about his former client: "The fact that something really bad happened here is really sad, because he's an otherwise nice guy. He went to work every day and paid child support."

The "something really sad" was the death of a 50-year-old father of four and the critical injuries of his wife and teenage daughter. They were in their car when a vehicle driven by a guy named John J. Lawless (you got that right), 37, crossed the center line on a curve and suddenly slammed into the family's car.

Old Johnny Boy wasn't a newcomer to the drunken driving routine. Here's his incredible resume:

*In 1996, he was first arrested for drunken driving and placed in an alcohol-treatment program for first-time offenders. His blood alcohol level was three times the current limit for legal intoxication.

*During 1998, he was twice found guilty of drunken driving. He was sentenced  to 60 days in jail and a year of house arrest. Only five days after getting his electronic-monitoring bracelet for house arrest, he was arrested for driving while intoxicated.

* In 2002, after being arrested again for drunken driving and failing to complete numerous treatment programs, he was sentenced to six to 12 months in prison.

* In 2004, he was arrested again for drunken driving, but charges were dismissed.

* In 2005, he was convicted of drunken driving and sentenced for up to two years, but he appealed and charges were withdrawn.

* 2009, January, he was yet again arrested for drunken driving.

Then in September, he decided to have some more cocktails and instead of calling a cab, he hopped in his shiny red car and totally, irreversibly ruined a family's life, forever.

And after all of this misery, a lawyer has the gall to say "other than that, he was a nice guy" the kind who "went to work every day" (don't we all, you moron?) and "paid his child support (it's the law, you dimwit).

Yeah, pal, and other than that statement, maybe you're a thoughtful, caring human being.

But, somehow, I fiercely doubt it.

AuthorDiane Bones | CommentPost a Comment |

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