Thursday, April 15, 2010

Respite Saga Continues.....

Four weeks after the push to find respite began, I am still no where near a resolution. Even with the support and connections of the President and CEO of the Long Island Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association......nothing.
I'm not sure anyone of importance "gets" the fact that I am VERY nervous about leaving Mike in a facility. This is not something that would be my first choice. Added to the stress of dealing with an ill spouse, comes the unfathomable realization that RESPITE DOES NOT EXIST.
My last ditch effort is a call that I already made. My good friend MaryAnn (Pres. of Alz. Association) directed me to her last option - a woman who runs another hospice. She confirmed that Mike is in fact entitled to 5 days of respite (DUH !!), and that while they cannot guarantee which facility he will be placed, they have enough facilities that they should be able to accommodate us. If they have a facility with our dates available, we may have to switch hospices.
Bottom line is that it appears the hospice we are enrolled only has one facility they use for respite. I wish they would have told us this sooner.

Here's hoping and praying that this last option works.

1 comment:

karen said...

I am so sorry. Mine or moms respite started today. I ask for this week months ago and they cannot tell you if you get it you just have to wait and see if there is an opening.
Which I hate because I still can't make real plans just hope for the best.Our hospice is building a new home in another county which will take the load of this county . Hopefully I will be able to make some real plans in the future. Good luck with your respite.