Emergency services, a rant.
My 96 y/o mother is on the floor, again, in her house. No one is there. She has some necklace system which she forgot. I cannot remember the name of the company. I did not arrange that. Not the first time. More like the tenth.
She has a caregiver, my sister. Inconsequential when she won't answer her iPhone. I asked several years ago, at a local fire dept event how to do this, at the time one could call area code+911. No more. Confirmed broken link. I tried going through 911 locally, only after trying non-emergency phone numbers. They cannot connect, from at least one local operator. They suggested 411 (directory assistance). I have a rum-dum phone co, that was that sound. I tried on my cell. Got given a robo number for 911. It was a gynecology office in the right area, I was not sobbing at that point.
I am not sobbing now. But our emergency infrastructure has been dis-assembled in the past few years. Heads-up, people. I have no phone numbers of near-neighbors to haul her off the floor. Isolated.
Comments
Oh, riverlover, I am so sorry to hear this.
You posted over an hour ago ... where you able to get hold of someone since then? Even so, perhaps its time for another referral to social services for a safety review.
{{{riverlover}}}
~ Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle. ~
Sister appeared.
I have yet to hear from her. Useless fume.
Hey! my dear friends or soon-to-be's, JtC could use the donations to keep this site functioning for those of us who can still see the life preserver or flotsam in the water.
Oh no!
The non-emergency numbers don't work, as in no one answers? Sheesh! What state do you live in? That is horrid!
The 5 Star company provides a waterproof unit
that has one button which when pressed connects you with an American operator trained in emergency dispatch. A fall feature can be added so that if the wearer falls and is inert for 5 seconds, an ambulance is dispatched to the location. Since the device has a GPS feature, the location is pinpointed.
A family member can link into the device and determine where the wearer is, if the device is charged, and if there have been any calls.
I think something like this can provide peace of mind, to a degree. You can find out if the device is being charged and carried and where it is anytime of the day or night.
The operators are good at summoning EMS services and providing them with relevant medical histories so they will know what to look for when they arrive.
"The justness of individual land right is not justifiable to those to whom the land by right of first claim collectively belonged"
Google the city she lives in
Every city in America has a website now.
The local police department will be linked on the front page.
www.Angie4Congress.com
#StrongerTogether for a better future for OUR posterity
Not too useful IRL, BTDT.
We are being isolated.
Hey! my dear friends or soon-to-be's, JtC could use the donations to keep this site functioning for those of us who can still see the life preserver or flotsam in the water.
Okay, this is bad but there are solutions
1) call the local police non-emergency line and explain your situation. Tell them you have already tried 911. Ask them to do a wellness check on your mother's address.
2) call the POST OFFICE local to that address. You'll want to call the processing and distribution center for the local post office's number if you don't have a listing. Ask for the carrier supervisor at that local office, anf explain to them that you need a wellness check done, and why. I used to be a full-timer at USPS and postal carriers are known for doing this.
3) call all of the emergency numbers you have for local services and tell them that you believe your mother has fallen and broken her hip, which is a life threatening emergency at her age. Yes. Lie abominably. Lie right through your teeth to the person answering that phone, and lie without any apology or second thought. Yes, that might cause you some sort of trouble, but.... if it were me I would say anything I had to say, truthful or not, to assure my own mom's well-being.
Good luck!
I had forgotten the broken hip strategy.
This particular situation is way beyond tragedy. She can't see well, can't hear, very immobile due to OA, brain injuries forgetful, and still feisty. If placed, against her will (she knows, dammit) in a facility she will go psychotic (BTDT). A small woman who was a teacher, wife, mother, researcher, survivor to 96. Unaware.
Hey! my dear friends or soon-to-be's, JtC could use the donations to keep this site functioning for those of us who can still see the life preserver or flotsam in the water.
Try taking her to some facilities to visit (perhaps after you
visit yourself first and narrow it down)? Some are very nice. My parents have been OK with some that they have visited (in their 80s, many of their friends are now in homes of one sort or another). Perhaps she will find something she likes more than she thinks. Tell her how much you worry about her, maybe you can talk her into an assisted home of her choosing?
What about home health? I think some of them have people that are more like housekeepers, not so expensive, provide meals and companionship and a variety of unskilled help. Or people at her church who can spend time with her/check up on her/be a contact person if your sister is out of touch?
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