Getting help lifting a bed ridden person into her ...

BettyeM898829 · ‎01-22-2019

My cousin broke her hip and is confined 99% of the time to her bed. She has doctor appointments that she needs to attend but getting her in and out of bed, into a wheel chair and down the steps to a van to transport her to the doctor is quite a challange.

Does anyone know of an organization or group that we can call for assistance in this area. We just need someone to help lift her into her chair and then wheel her to the van. She has a caregiver that will assist her to the doctor and back home. But again, upon arrival at home we need the reverse service to get her back into bed.

Any information you can share with us would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you

GailL1 · ‎01-23-2019

@BettyeM898829 wrote:
My cousin broke her hip and is confined 99% of the time to her bed. She has doctor appointments that she needs to attend but getting her in and out of bed, into a wheel chair and down the steps to a van to transport her to the doctor is quite a challange.

Does anyone know of an organization or group that we can call for assistance in this area. We just need someone to help lift her into her chair and then wheel her to the van. She has a caregiver that will assist her to the doctor and back home. But again, upon arrival at home we need the reverse service to get her back into bed.

Any information you can share with us would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you

Betty,

Is her bedridden state due to something other than the broken hip?

I say this because normally a person that breaks their hip, has surgery, a short recuperation in the hospital, goes to a SNF for further mobility therapy and then more therapy once at home, with mobility increasing everyday, getting them back as much mobility as they can get to in a relatively short time. Perhaps some may have to use a walker for awhile or longer depending upon how much they can bounce back.

Being bedridden has many problems associated with it - circulation problems, possible lung problems, muscle atrophy, cleanliness, etc.

So my question - Why is she not more mobile now and is this bedridden condition of a long(er) term nature?

There are mechanical lifts - there are other devices, less expensive, that can assist in the lifting.

There are primary care doctors that make house call - There are CNAs that can help you with the day to day care of a bedridden person.

There could be some other help too but your description of her condition has me questioning her actual state. Could you clarify why she is bedridden.

It's Always Something . . . . Roseanna Roseannadanna

BettyeM898829 · ‎01-23-2019

Thank you for your response and yes your concerns are correct. My cousin's condition is more than a broken hip, tho this is where it began. Before she completely recovered from the broken hip, on her way back to the doctor for a check up, she fell and broke her leg. She has other conditions, diabetes, blood pressure, possible lung condition and who knows what else. She has given up and is determin that she will never walk again and that is her mindset.

Whatever doctor she is going to right now has not offered to do home visits and to me, that seems the best idea. Instead her doctor referred her to an Individual who comes with his assistant to do what is needed to get her to her doctor's office. The problem with that is you never get the same two men and the cost for their services range from $150.00-$200.00 each visit. Now she is being told that this price may go up. As most older people, she is on a fixed income.

I am just getting involved with her situation and trying to see what can be done to help her. I will suggest to her to see if her doctor can make house calls and if not, I will try to look into other doctors that might.

Until then, because she is still willing to go see a doctor, I'm just looking for anything that can make it easier and less costly for her. She does have one of those lifters but she still needs a strong person or two to help her down the ramp and to the van and back again.

Thank you again.

agoyer · ‎01-24-2019

@BettyeM898829 That seems like a very high cost for what they are doing. Depending on where you live, there are increasingly mobile Doctors and mobile x-rays, ultrasounds, and other tests that can be done at home. We switched to mobile docs for my parents when it got so hard to take them out - it was wonderful! However, it’s harder to find specialists who are mobile. So that may be a challenge if she is seeing a specialist like an orthopedic doc. Here is my AARP “Taking Care” video about mobile health services

On the other hand it’s good for your cousin to get out of the house! So perhaps finding a more affordable service would help. There are some transportation and escort services that also provide mobility assistance. Contact your local area agency on aging and ask about services, costs (some are on a sliding fee scale according to what you can afford). If your cousin is eligible for Medicaid there are also options under Medicaid so you can ask about that as well.

To find the local area agency on aging, you can go to the Community Resource Finder that Jen suggested - click on Community Services and then on area agency on Aging. If you have any trouble with that, you can also go to the Eldercare Locator at www.eldercare.acl.gov.

Your cousin is lucky to have you! I know this is stressful for you. Take a moment to breathe and take care of yourself too!

Take care,

Amy Goyer, AARP’s Family & Caregiving Expert

Author, Juggling Life, Work and Caregiving

BettyeM898829 · ‎01-25-2019

Thank you.

JaneCares · ‎01-27-2019

Bettye, you got some great advice here. I'll just add a couple of thoughts, because you sure have a full plate now that you've stepped up to help her.

Was she in the hospital for any of this? She needs follow up appointments, but she should also have received a referral for home health care that should include an RN, and a physical therapist. If she has Medicare, she'd also get an aide to help with bathing. All of them can teach you how to transfer her from bed to chair, or using the hoyer lift, or whatever. It might not be too late: her primary care provider, or the orthopedist, whomever was the attending during her hospital stay, can order these services within a certain time period.

Does she have income? If she's not getting Medicare yet, she sounds eligible for social security disability. She needs money.

She also sounds depressed. She's lost a lot of independence and could be experiencing a reactive depression to her unfortunate circumstances. Her PCP could start her on a trial of antidepressant. A visit or three with a therapist or psychiatrist would also help. Yet another appointment i know. Is there a way you could coordinate with the various specialists offices so that appointments are less frequent? Or on the same day?

I used to be a social worker in Washington DC and a couple of programs exist for home visits for patients. There were also physicians who would be your personal physician, on call all the time, for a high fee, in order to avoid the doctors billing insurance: it's called concierge care. For wealthy people.

Please use HER money and assets for her care and don't start using yours. If she has very little, then its time to look up the area agency on aging as Amy suggested and get going on apply for long term care medicaid. Sometimes state medicaid will pay for home care. But if she needs as much help as you say into the future, she needs placement in a facility, unless there are lots of helpers, and some professional home care aides, who can help her stay at home. Which brings to my last piece of advice: please don't do all of this by yourself. Extend the caregiving circle throughout your and her family. Everyone can pitch in in some way. No excuses.

As they say in AA, take what you like and leave the rest.

Let us know how things evolve, too, if you can take the time. We all learn from each other!!!

Jane

BettyeM898829 · ‎01-28-2019

Thank you Jane. I am running into a lot here. My cousin is not helpful, she is getting more and more depressed and is reluctant to accepting changes we're trying to make and her children and grand children, living in the same house, are the worst. She does not have Medicare and is a member of KAISER...…
Thanks to all of you that have responded, I have leads and I am looking into all of them. As you can guess, it is taking time. I only have one other family member that is willing to work with me but we will not give up on her. She needs the help...hank you again.

GailL1 · ‎01-28-2019

@BettyeM898829 wrote:
Thank you Jane. I am running into a lot here. My cousin is not helpful, she is getting more and more depressed and is reluctant to accepting changes we're trying to make and her children and grand children, living in the same house, are the worst. She does not have Medicare and is a member of KAISER...…
Thanks to all of you that have responded, I have leads and I am looking into all of them. As you can guess, it is taking time. I only have one other family member that is willing to work with me but we will not give up on her. She needs the help...hank you again.

Betty -

Details are important in order to help her (and you) get what she needs. So, the glaring details that is needed here are:

So if she does NOT have Medicare, what type of insurance does she have via Kaiser? A previous employer plan? An individual plan (Kaiser) from the state or federal exchange (ACA)? Or perhaps an individual plan (Kaiser) off the exchange?
Approximately how old is she? Will she be qualifying for Medicare soon at age 65? Is she vested in Social Security? If not, there is always SSI depending upon her income.
What is her prognosis - you said that she thinks she will never walk again but what does her doctor think?
Is she low income? If so, there is Medicaid.
Does she get Physical Therapy now - as a home care service?
What are the general reasons for the doctor appointments - PT, monitoring her conditions? She may need to be evaluated psychologically.

I do doubt that Kaiser, since it is HMO based, has a visiting doctor but she should still be getting some care at home like PT or a visiting nurse - but they may. My mother had a visiting doctor that took care of her in the last year of her life - yes, he came to her and also had access to ordering some test where the equipment also came to her. Yes, these type of docs (visiting) do a lot of pallative care. He took Medicare Assignment..

Somehow I am picturing your cousin as someone who is tired of all the illnesses and injuries.

Perhaps she is a rather large lady and that makes it even harder with her lung problems, possible depression, to move about even though being bedridden is not a good thing especially if she has circulatory problems from her diabetes and bad lung function already.

Is the reason why so much strength help (a couple of guys) is needed to get her up because of her size or perhaps because she is just dead weight and cannot help - willingly or healthwise.

I agree with Jane - you are gonna have to work with her insurance company or get some help from an agency to determine any other options for help not only in her care but also perhaps her finances. To help her in dealing with these agencies, you will probably need her healthcare POA.

It's Always Something . . . . Roseanna Roseannadanna

BettyeM898829 · ‎01-28-2019

Thanks Gail for your input. To the best of my knowledge now, my cousin does not qualify for SSI. She gets a retirement from the Gov. and does have Medicare Part A. Not sure yet of all of her income but she does not qualify as low income. She is over 80, is large in size because she is in bed the majority of her day with little to no exercise and her only out is when she goes to the doctor for check ups, blood work, etc. Can't get much info from Kaiser but do know that they do not do home visits..

She has a worker to help her 4-5 days a week/5-6 hours per day. I'm still finding out what else she is getting so that I can figure out what else she qualifies for. As requested, I'm getting a lot of suggestions from all of you and I will let you know when we have a solution. Thanks

GailL1 · ‎01-28-2019

@BettyeM898829 wrote:
Thanks Gail for your input. To the best of my knowledge now, my cousin does not qualify for SSI. She gets a retirement from the Gov. and does have Medicare Part A. Not sure yet of all of her income but she does not qualify as low income. She is over 80, is large in size because she is in bed the majority of her day with little to no exercise and her only out is when she goes to the doctor for check ups, blood work, etc. Can't get much info from Kaiser but do know that they do not do home visits..
She has a worker to help her 4-5 days a week/5-6 hours per day. I'm still finding out what else she is getting so that I can figure out what else she qualifies for. As requested, I'm getting a lot of suggestions from all of you and I will let you know when we have a solution. Thanks

Sorry, my bad - hit post before adding my response so I am editing to add my comments -

Betty,

By Gov. retirement - does that mean a pension from the government or a Social Security Benefit.

Perhaps she has Kaiser as a government employment benefit and it works with Part A and supplies her Part B.

OR she has a Kaiser Medicare Advantage plan but she has to have Medicare Part B to have this type of Medicare Advantage coverage.

What Medicare Part A and B cover - Home Health Care

It is Part B that MAY cover non-emergency transport. Medicare Emergency & Non-emergency Transport

Before you can speak to Medicare or to Kaiser about her coverage and/or conditions, you are gonna have to get her authorization for them to talk to you. She can, with your help, set up a Medicare Account at myMedicare.gov

As you set up the account, there is a place to authorize another person to act on her behalf with Medicare.

I think you might have some other questions as you get into all the weeds with her condition and coverage. Let us know - there is lots of help here but you do have to have some general details since the system of Medicare tends to get complicated.

It's Always Something . . . . Roseanna Roseannadanna

Jen · ‎01-23-2019

@BettyeM898829 wrote:

My cousin broke her hip and is confined 99% of the time to her bed. She has doctor appointments that she needs to attend but getting her in and out of bed, into a wheel chair and down the steps to a van to transport her to the doctor is quite a challange.

Does anyone know of an organization or group that we can call for assistance in this area. We just need someone to help lift her into her chair and then wheel her to the van. She has a caregiver that will assist her to the doctor and back home. But again, upon arrival at home we need the reverse service to get her back into bed.

Any information you can share with us would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you

Hi @BettyeM898829 - thank you for reaching out to us. I'd like to point you toward our new Community Resource Finder tool. When you open it, click on Care at Home and type in your zipcode. You should then see several organizations on the right hand side of your screen to which you can contact about their services.

We also have helpful mobility videos HERE. Scroll down to the bottom of the page for the videos.

I hope you find this helpful. Please come back and let us know what you were able to find. And best wishes to your cousin for a healthy recovery.

AARPJen
Caregiving Concierge

BettyeM898829 · ‎01-23-2019

Thank you so much for your response. I have printed out and will make contact with these organizations in hope of finding what we need. I will send a message as soon as we find something. thanks