There is an old saying which intends to maintain hope in the midst of despair.
Ponder this newest outcome in my husband's Alzheimer disease life with me.
When I returned last summer from a vacation, the hospice worker called me in for a conference stating my husband was "failing." I rushed to make funeral arrangements, to get my paperwork in order, expecting the worst. I did not leave town for the following nine months, but of course nothing bad happened. My husband's speech has declined, his cognitive skills are decreased even more than they were before, but he is physically well.
So well, in fact, that hospice called me in for a conference as soon as I returned this time to inform me they were removing my husband from their care!
That is the door that is closing. The memory care facility will absorb the services that were performed by the hospice workers and my husband will probably be happy with less blood pressure monitoring.
The door that is opening is an introduction to a team of physicians who do only house calls and residential facility visits, who will provide the oversight of my husband's medication, arrive on site for monthly visits and be available on call for emergencies, removing any possibility of hospital visits for any reason. This will greatly reduce the amount of dollars being charged to Medicare and may be a cost saving concept for other end-of-life patients whose physical health is stable.
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