Yesterday afternoon I visited a 91- year- old friend at one of Nashville's most upscale, prestigious  nursing homes.

I was shocked to hear her tell the story of being traumatized by an Alzheimer's patient.

A man from across the hall would wander into her room, search through her things, and try to make her hold the water pitcher.

My friend is bedridden and very weak and cannot hold the pitcher.

She complained about him to the staff but  it took two months for the problem to be solved.  Meanwhile she was very scared of him.

The man also frightened other nursing home residents on a daily basis.

One solution the home came up with was to tack up orange mesh in front the  door. 

It is generally believed Alzheimer's patients will not cross this orange mesh. 

That turned out to be true, but they put it over my friend's door.

At lease one of her regular visitors was afraid to go in, not because of Alzheimer's, but because the person thought  it meant she was contagious.

In hearing her story we thought this matter should have been cleared up much sooner than it was.

The man was finally admitted to the Alzheimer's section of the home.  His family had not wanted to put  him there before they had to, or that was the rumor going around.

Our question is why did it take so long and why was it politically correct to respect the man's family's wishes and not those of the other  nursing home residents?

This incident  shows some of the problems helpless elderly people have to deal with when they don't have advocates. 

Popularity: 5% [?]

• Alzheimer's, Peter Falk and Private Thoughts Peter Falk's Alzheimer’s diagnosis is very sad for me. In fact, I'm in grief for one of my most fav actors. What bothers me the most is that the whole devastating mess of his daughter trying to gain a conservatorship has been revealed in public for all the see.......
• In-Home Health Care for the Elderly Trumps Over Nursing Homes Expanding in-home health care for the elderly is catching on. Oregon and Tennessee are two states which are pushing public money away from nursing homes and into more individual care given to the elderly in their own homes. This is major. We're looking at a big shift in the elder......
• When You Become Your Parents' Nursing Home You're at the point where your aging parents need a nursing home or you. You decide not to move them into a nursing home and they come to live with you. What are some of the hot issues? Francesco Donlan has an article When Parents Need Parenting that deals with......
• Nursing Home Visit Complete With Lindbergh Story, Visiting Baby Burros and a Tornado Warning Is Anything But Dull How could I have ever thought a nursing home visit could be dull? Yesterday My 82-year old Dad and I visited a nursing home in Brentwood, Tennessee. I had no idea it would become an adventure. We were visiting a 97-year old lady who told us a childhood story of......
• More Nursing Homes Losing Federal Funding, Part 1 State inspectors across the country  are cracking down on nursing home violations.These violations can be serious enough for some nursing homes to lose their Medicare and Medicaid funding.  Because they can not operate without the government's money flowing into their coffers, many are being forced to close.Exactly what are the types of violations......

• Winners of The Last Man in the World! Many thanks to Abigail Reynolds and Sourcebooks for hosting this giveaway of Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy: The Last Man in the World. We have two lucky winners to announce. Thanks to all who commented at Darcy & Elizabeth: Finding New Aspects of Their Characters to Explore. Here are the winners:......
• Man jobs Now I know that this is the year 2009 and women have worked hard to get equality, but I don't care what anyone says. There are just some household jobs out there that should be left up to the man! I believe this picture says it all. I am not......
• The Secret to Falling In Love With Your Home All Over Again Home ownership has long been described as the American Dream. Some in the media have questioned that statement recently, and for good reason. For many, their dream has turned into a nightmare with underwater mortgage balances, mortgage rates adjusting, and ever-increasing property taxes. Still, most of us take great pride......
• College Graduation Parties   We got back from a fun weekend. We back to our old place (LOL, it's only been like 6 weeks) to celebrate the graduations of my brother in law and one of my dear friends. He's a physical therapy assistant. It's something that fits him as he's athletic......
• Have You Seen Your Soul Lately? How are we aware of our soul?  Well, awareness of the soul is scary. Like in the Egyptian book of the dead, it’s the encounter with a mirror. It’s an awareness of what about you can die and what changes.  That can make people feel very insecure. But unless you will......