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On hospice for COPD mother broke hip w/multiple fractures dr at hospital sure she would not last its 4 wks and now hospice says no recert?!? She is laying there being a trooper. I've helped her fight through delirium and struggle with the in ability to get up for the bathroom. Now hospice says they are done and I am left to find a surgeon that will try to do a non-anesthesia repair. I feel like hospice wanted her to die and now that she didn't its too much work for them. Her general doctor hasn't even responded in person and says go get an Osteo doctor. Is this compassion? Hospice Nurse kept saying they don't do curative treatment. Well I sure hope they feel good about that saying. I feel like they have left us in a worse state - well actually I know they have because she still has terminal COPD and know a broken hip too. No offer for an epidural procedure or a nerve block for pain. I've had to go research all these options on my own and I am currently looking for a compassionate surgeon in the Council Bluffs/Omaha area.

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Get her to the emergency room via ambulance. That's why Hospice dropped her so you can get her treated.
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Hospice does not do curative work. It is in their charter and in their mission statement and it is what Medicare will pay for. Sometimes what passes for "curative" is a little hard to understand. But now that Mom is off hospice you can get treatment the medical staff thinks is feasible and justified. Once she is stable, reapply for hospice.

My mother broke her hip. Surgery was not recommended. She went on hospice, since she did seem to be dying. But she recovered gradually and after 3 months she was clearly not dying and hospice "graduated" her off the program. We took her then to the orthosurgeon. There was nothing to be done for the hip. She is wheel-chair bound but content, a year later. Hospice helped manage the pain in her hip. If we had wanted "curative" care we would have had to get her off hospice first.

Sad, I know, especially in such an emotional time of your life. I've experienced hospice for Mom and for my husband. Both organizations were amazingly compassionate and helpful. But they have to follow their rules.
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I'm a total outsider looking in (since I live in Canada) but I have read many times of people freaking out when their loved one under hospice care has a need for acute care. You'd think somebody in these organizations would be aware of the need to explain how the system works instead of just letting families try to figure it out themselves.
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Flowgo, your post reflects what you think about your own situation; it would be very rare and unprofessional for medical staff to "probably want your loved one to die". Others have good experiences from highly trained hospice staff. Your situation is different and the community here understands that, and has expressed that you go for help because for you to keep rehearsing it here does harm to yourself. It is not good for you and helps no one to continue writing your experience with the thought of changing the medical care system. Please align yourself with others who are already successful at advocating against the medical care system, if you must. Dear girl, take care of your heart and mind.
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Medicare won't pay for hospice AND anything therapeutic at the same time.
Not even physical therapy.

Going off hospice is not a bad thing. Their care approach is totally different than a treatment team's approach.
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Jeanne, I've stated before that I am envious of the American hospice model. I know when my brother had cancer he went to the hospice wing of a major rehab hospital, but it was only one wing and I'm sure way too few beds for the need. There are stand alone hospice facilities, but I think most people spend their last days in a hospital or nursing home. Our little local hospital has only one designated hospice bed.
I'm fearful I won't have sufficient support available to me if my mom needs more intensive care. For now I have a doctor who is willing to make house calls a few times a year, a nurse who checks in on us once a month and a psw who comes in twice a week to help with bathing and give me respite. The problem is that they are all separate entities and the care is not coordinated, although our nurse did contact the doctor and advocate meds for mom's anxiety. I know that many people do choose to die at home, but I'm really not sure how that will actually work. As health care is a provincial responsibility there are no national standards so I have no idea how the other provinces are doing things, and I did try to research this when I was making my decision on how to care for my mom.
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Falls happen, and hindsight is always 20/20.
Given her COPD and chronic pain issues the morphine was probably a reasonable med to try. Not everyone on it will suffer from delirium, and given her history with another opioid medication I would think it was less likely to expect her to have any severe side effects.
I understand your outrage when those you have entrusted to care for your loved one have let you down. Navigating the health care system can be like walking a maze with a blindfold on, never sure if we are making the right choices. I have often wished for someone to hold my hand and guide my way.
I think you can take comfort from the others here who have had similar stories and a positive outcome. It sounds as though your mom is being taken care of now and is being kept comfortable?
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Thank you all for the answers. I want to at least clarify that Hospice did describe their role correctly. I disagreed with her placement in Hospice and felt Palliative was what she needed. Her diagnosis for Hospice care is COPD. However she also has MS with Chronic Pain. I feel that her general doctor was uncomfortable with her pain medicine. Now that we are in her new situation, I am just frustrated what is going to happen now. You go from the pain meds that Hospice has you on back to what? I'm not sure and found out today that their is no way to repair her hip without anesthesia but we are going to make appt with specialist and see if maybe the think she could handle a surgery. Hospice did "alright" however it was a pain med change from Oxy to Morphine that caused "delirium" of which I feel Hospice should have been on top of it and told us to not let her up and around since that is how she fell coming out of the bathroom. Hind sight is 20/20 but I really do feel they should have said something since we were reporting to her nurse that she was kinda out of it.
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They probably did want her to die. It is so terrible but that seems what most of them are in business for. That seems to be their dirty little secret.It is too bad she cant get a hip replacement. That is the best way to go when a person breaks their hip.I know some people have to fight with their insurance to get a hip replacement.
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I am helping people by telling them so they can be prepared for the worst but hope for the best as the saying goes. Are you trying to scare away the people like me who have suffered and want to share their experiences. When they share they are also helping others by giving them knowledge of what can happen. It is true not all hospitals and nursing homes are bad but when they do bad things people should be aware and not just sweep it under the carpet as some of you seem to do. This is a site to help caregivers which I want to do by warning them before their loved one is hurt or killed.
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