Things have been building up to another head...concerns my sisters and I have for Mom.

Today, I started taking action again...

Susan:

I hope to talk to you as soon as possible about all these things, but also wanted to reiterate them here for your reference...

1. Mom has appointment with her general physician, Dr. Martindale, on Wednesday, November 27th at 2pm. I'll come at lunch to get her ready and take her that day. The appointment is for discussing with the doctor our concerns about Mom's diet, activity, sleep patterns, etc. I will be trying to get answers that day for all of us, or at least get the ball rolling towards the answers...

2. Between now and then, we need Manor staff to document Mom's 'activities of daily living', i.e., start a log for every day between now and 11/27 that includes a) sleep patterns, i.e., when/if she gets up, when/if she goes to sleep, when/if she naps inbetween; 2) eating patterns, i.e., what/if she eats, and when; c) social interaction, i.e., when/if she participates in any activities and what they are; and d) exercise patterns, i.e., what/if she does physically such as walking the halls, etc.

We realize this puts more work onto Manor staff for this time period; however, in the long run, we hope it will assist the doctor at the time of the appointment so he can better address recommendations, if possible, to help improve these areas for Mom, and in turn make things more clear and easier for Manor staff.

3. Please let Manor staff know we'd like them not to sell Mom candy any more. I have not bought her candy in months, and she has no other way to get it except through their kindness. In Mom's case, however, it's killing her with kindness! If she wants some of her Schwann ice cream, or one of the served desserts that come with your meals there, that's fine, just no more candy.

4. I left a message with Diana Jorgeson, Mom's case manager for the Alternative Program. I will be discussing with her how/if it would be possible to incorporate some personal care for Mom into the time alloted her for that via Manor staff. Our concerns are:

a) Mom's scalp is tender and dry; it's been recommended by her hairdresser that it be massaged 3-4 times per week between salon appointments. I try to do that myself for her when I'm there twice a week, but more often would be better.

b) Mom's skin in general - I've noticed small dry patches on her upper arm lately, and am wondering if some of the body lotion I see that she has wouldn't help her with that if it was ensured that it be applied after her baths (having staff prompt her to apply, and have them observe her application of it...)

d) Mom's dental habits - Mom has horrendeous dental habits in recent months. I'll be asking Diana about how it might be incorporated into the daily personal care time for someone to prompt Mom to brush and observe her doing it for confirmation. This is having direct effects on her gums and mouth tissues being very sore and tender, not to mention very bad breath and making it harder to eat...

e) Footcare - Mom's toenails are in bad shape. I've tried to get her to allow me to trim them, but she won't let me. I've asked my sister Sharon to try to get Mom to agree to visit a podiatrist while she is in Chicago, but that may or may not work out. In the meantime, I'll ask Diana if there's a way to incorporate this as a weekly or ---- personal care item for Manor staff to aid Mom with. Right now, she has something painful with a big toe (ingrown??) that needs addressing, for one thing...

I realize that even if Diana feels that many or all can be addressed by Manor staff through the personal care time allotted, that Manor staff may not have the time available to devote to this. If that is the case, I will try and see if there are alternatives such as someone outside of the Manor staff that could come in and help Mom with some of these items...

I will keep you posted, Susan; in the meantime, I hope to talk to you about these items, and allow you any clarifcation or questions you might have, as well as confirm that you can log Mom's activites for the next two weeks. Thanks MUCH!