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Nursing Home

Were not going to stay young forever and caring for the elderly is a big challenge. If your mother or father came to you and said place me in a nursing home. Would you do it or would you ignore their demands and care for them yourself ?

Home Nursing

We did put my dad into a nursing home. We live about 10 hours away from where he and my mom lived, and he had had several bad strokes (4 of them in 3 days). While my mother is an LPN, and works at a nursing home, she couldn't take care of him and work at the same time.

The nursing home had the facilities, the expertise, and the capability to provide the care and support that he needed.

When he had the opportunity to go "home" for a weekend, he would decline, as he liked it in the nursing home.

But, it really depends on the situation. If it was simply a matter of them being older and needing a little more help, I certainly wouldn't consider it an imposition. At the same time, sometimes they really want some space, and having a family always around them doesn't give them the privacy or independence that they might need.

With assisted living centers, adult day care, etc, there are a lot of options now to help an older parent both enjoy their independence, and still get the help that they need.

But getting back to the nursing home idea, if their health is in such a way that they really need nursing help available 24 hours per day, the nursing home may be the best option available.

Nursing Home Health & Special Psychology

My dad was in a nursing home for 2 years before he died. He lived so far away that visiting was difficult and he didn't even know who I was anymore. My mom, who is 74, lives with my husband and me. She has quite a few health problems and could never live on her own. I thank God that Paul works from home and can be here for her. I do worry that there may come a day when she needs more care than we can give, but until then she will be with me. She told me about how my Grand father, her father-in-law, was shuttled from son to daughter to son all around before they finally made the decision to put him in a retirement home. I also know that he blamed his oldest daughter for it, even though all the children agreed to it. Being an only child I want to be sure to give my mom all the care she gave me when I was young, it's my way of paying for all she has done for me. To this day I regret that my dad had to go into a home but there was no one else to care for him, both myself and my mom needed to work to live. It'll be 20 years this coming January that he's been gone and I still wonder if he understood we did it for his own good.

Edited: ReneeisXena on 2nd Sep, 2004 - 5:53pm

Home Nursing

If my mother approached me and requested to go into a nursing home, I would respect her wishes and do so. However, knowing my mother, I know that would never happen. She would rather live on her own and struggle, or live with me and my family. Unfortunately, this means that if there was a reason that we could not care for her (medical reasons) and she could not care for herself, it would be very difficult to put her in a home, and it would mentally 'break' her. I doubt she would last very long in such an environment. This is something I dread thinking about, but she is already 61 and not getting younger. I just hope when the time comes, that I am strong enough to deal with it.

Home Nursing

Nursing home quality scores drop in new federal ratings

A third of the nation's 15,500 nursing homes get lower quality scores under a tougher new government ratings system, out today. USA TODAY's coverage includes the ratings for every nursing home, including measures of each facility's use of anti-psychotic drugs, which can pose serious risks for older adults. Ref. USAToday