I've just been reading about Hikergirl's trauma of placing her husband too soon. I'm wondering how you can keep them there if they want to come home? Does a doctor have to recommend placement - how does that work? I'm not thinking about it just yet, my dh is in stage 5 (I think) but seems to be progressing fairly rapidly all the sudden. I know that the day will come when I just cannot keep him home. But, I also know that if it were now, he would not be at all cooperative. What are the legalities of placement, etc.?
mothert--no, a doctor doesn't have to recommend placement. It is an individual decision based on the family's judgment/financial circumstances, etc. For me, I knew that I wanted to keep my husband at home long enough that he would not realize he was being placed and would cooperate. Since he has EOAD and is physically strong, I worried that if I placed him too soon, there would be dire consequences. So I kept him at home until well into Stage 6, when he didn't realize the difference between home, the hospital and ALF. At that point he was totally cooperative with the move and has adjusted well. I have been told that I kept him home approx. 2 years longer than most families would have, but I'm glad it worked out that way.
At the other end of the spectrum, I have seen cases where individuals have been placed relatively early in the disease process, because that is what the family wanted.
In most states you cannot place a person against their will unless you have guardianship-which can be costly and tedious. They have to first be declared incompetent. By the time I placed my husband he wasn't aware enough to protest.
i think bluedaze is correct. without guardianship its almost impossible if they are defiant. plus you would need a drs opinion of course they are incapacitated and unable to care for themselves or render financial decisions. of course if they are violent or in self destruct mode, calling 911 to have them enter a geriphysch hospital without their consent ( believe its called Baker Acted)for evaluation may cause a dr to initiate placement for their own safety.
We live in Washington state and I'm pretty sure I couldn't admit him against his will. I really wouldn't want to place him unless I just could no longer take care of him at home We do have ample resources to care for him at home, so until that becomes too burdensome I will try to keep him home. Of course, when he's being a butt (not all that often, really), I'd like to ship him out pronto. Fortunately, those episodes are infrequent and are over pretty quickly; I just wondered how that process worked. Thanks everyone for your input.