I'm pretty new to the med scene right now. I'll start Nursing school for my ADN in the Fall. I'm currently finishing up a CNA course, and I just started work as a nurse aide. However, I'm working privately for a sort of friend of the family type person. He's a C4-C5 quadraplegic with enough limited use of his arms to control a mechanical chair. At any rate, I get him up/dressed/fed/off to work in the morning and do the reverse at night. He's been receiving very poor care from his live-in help. This person has been with him 12 years and is now enormously obese and has a back injury that causes them to "omit" certain parts of his hygienic care. And to clarify, this person is not, and never was, a health care worker. A few examples of the poor care would be: bathed only once per week, buttocks wiped with dry, raspy, paper towels (no wet wipes or anything, just lets dry feces stick around till bath day), and spills urine from condom cath onto bed and doesn't ever change the sheets. I could go on and on about the nasty house, not washing his clothes, etc. but I'll keep it as short as possible. What I'm looking for is anyone who knows of any agencies/charities or anything that could be contacted for help with this. He doesn't expect me to bathe him or anything else. Just the above-mentioned things. It's so sad, and I cry every time I leave his house. I just wanted to see if there was anything out there for someone in his condition that is either free or very cheap. He has health insurance through his job, but his accident happened almost thirty years ago when he was very young and might be considered pre-existing or whatever, so I guess it doesn't cover him for this type of service. I don't want to pry, so I'm just covertly seeking help. He has mentioned in the past that he tries all the time to get better care, but just doesn't succeed. He doesn't have much money to offer for extra care personnel. I'm working almost for experience alone. But I have to quit this Fall when I'm in school, and I'm so torn about leaving him with just his live-in help again. I'm hoping that maybe some people on the other side of the medical fence will have seen or heard something that can help him. We're in South Mississippi. At any rate, please offer any advice or knowledge you might have. I will very grateful.
She doesn't work for any agency or company or anything. She's just a regular person from off of the street who he recruited 12 years ago to live with him and provide care. She has no other job. The family knows about all of this stuff. They visit every now and then. There is no mistaking the poor care. His house smells like old urine and sometimes feces, and its got roaches, trash, and all manner of filth in most of the rooms. He smells most of the time, too. They know, there's no doubt, but I don't think they want to stick their fingers in the mess. In case I need to clarify, they are not supportive. He's their relative, but they apparently don't put too much stock in that stuff. Sorry if I rant, I'm just so upset over this.
in regard to other resouces for assitance -- have you considered catholic charities or salvation army or the jewish home services in your area?
perhaps the local visting nurses association knows of resources or could speak to his md about working with his insurance for someone to also come in .
finally here is an idea that just may work i just thought of
- how about calling a local cna training program that would have thier students do an free internship for your patient.
be proud of yourself -- your a a true example for a great nurse to be.
I hope someone corrects me if I'm wrong, I had to look it up. If it's "mensch" then it's "a person of integrity and honor".........Something I have to agree with! :) It's already been said, but you'll be a great nurse someday, Bumashes!!
Somewhere is your area there should be some kind of advocacy agency, I hope. ADS would probably be one, but know of others. One of the hardest things for disabled people sometimes is to find out where all the help agencies are. In my area we have a community services board that has case workers and they can help find services you need. The problem is most people don't even know they are there unless someone tells them about it.
Once you find one agency, they can tell you about others in your area. It never hurts to start building a list of services in your area to point people in their direction.
I have a disabled daughter of 12 yrs, and have tapped into my areas services quite a bit. I have found many of the other parents of disabled kids didn't know services were available that could help their children, or adult disabled either for that matter. When the opportunity presents itself I have let them know where they could go for help. Many agencies have sliding scale, scholarships, or free services for those with limited income. Social workers at your school or hospitals may be able to get you started in the right direction to find services as well.
Posted by KeithEMU - "Somewhere in your area there should be some kind of advocacy agency, I hope. ADS would probably be one ... One of the hardest things for disabled people sometimes is to find out where all the help agencies are. ... "
I was wondering, how is his skin? Any pressure sores?
At the moment, he has no pressure sores. However, he has had some in the past that were horrific. Mostly on the hip/buttocks area. You can tell where he had them by the gigantic scars on him. Skin on his feet is very very dry. His feet swell up quite a bit, too. One is almost always swollen about 5 times the normal size. Other than that, the rest of his skin is looking okay. Not great, but okay.
Follow Up: He's doing well. I come over almost every morning and night to help him out. I've, let's say, educated his live-in helper. She's still living with him, but she's not nearly as bad. In fact, I've even gotten her to get up and see a Dr about her own problems, so maybe she'll continue on this path. Anyway, just wanted to check back and update anyone who was watching.
Bumashes, MSN, APRN, NP
477 Posts
She doesn't work for any agency or company or anything. She's just a regular person from off of the street who he recruited 12 years ago to live with him and provide care. She has no other job. The family knows about all of this stuff. They visit every now and then. There is no mistaking the poor care. His house smells like old urine and sometimes feces, and its got roaches, trash, and all manner of filth in most of the rooms. He smells most of the time, too. They know, there's no doubt, but I don't think they want to stick their fingers in the mess. In case I need to clarify, they are not supportive. He's their relative, but they apparently don't put too much stock in that stuff. Sorry if I rant, I'm just so upset over this.