On Tue, Jul 12, 2011 at 7:24 AM, Bob in Jersey <[email protected]>wrote:
> > The hospital's caseworker (oddly, her desk was straight outside Mom's > room), and a liaison from the company that runs two of the three care- > center choices Mom and Dad made, were very courteous and gracious, > answering whatever questions they had (I had to go cool my heels in > the floor's waiting area, where happily was a telly similar to the > rooms); it appears that choice #1, not far from our favorite > supermarket, will be taking her in for as of now two to three weeks; > unlike with the hospital, she'll be wearing regular clothing which > we'll have to launder. > > The only thing is, when it comes time to transport her, it's going to > be blazing hot (mid-90s) and humid... > > I'll learn in the next day or two what cabler this center uses, and I > hope it ain't the one we left in 2009... > I am glad this was a relatively good experience, and hope it is a good placement for your Mom. I am a little worried about the company rep being present (assuming that was the first meeting with the SW). Hospitals some times have informal (or even formal) arrangements with certain providers to push business their way (not necessarily for direct financial gain to the hospital, though there are cases of physicians on staff at the hospital owning an interest in care centers; more often just one hand washing the other, with benefits in the form of easy or preferred placements, participation in research studies, shared professional staff). Also, if your Mom gave her permission, you should have been allowed to sit in on the meeting. I don't want to discourage you or set up suspicion about this placement, assuming the professionalism of all involved there is good reason to be optimistic about it. But if your mother gives her consent for you to be present at either medical or placement conferences I would encourage you to be as forceful as you want in insisting on it, and making sure that your mother's interests are shared and addressed. Even good hospitals find their lives are easier when they can deal only with their (many) elderly patients and manipulate them one way or the other into arrangements which may be optimal for the hospital, but not always for the patient. The more the hospital knows there are other people with knowledge watching and keeping tabs, the more incentive they have to do a good job. In my experience with elderly patients, being able to wear their own regular clothing is well worth having to launder them yourself. -- TV or Not TV .... The Smartest (TV) People! You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "TV or Not TV" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/tvornottv?hl=en
