They want me to put her in a Psch hospital to get her meds under control but I am afraid if I do this she will not get back into SNH becasue they only hold bed for 14 days and then you have to pay and she can't afford that. They crush up her meds and put in drink or pudding and she can taste it and won't take them and she won't swallow them. She yells and screams for hours they tell me and disrupts other patients. I am at my wits end to find a solution. I am her only living relative and don't know what to do.
I would ask the facility (or her own) doctor to do IV antibiotics if they need to. Perhaps can do it at facility or do inpatient for that problem. I'd focus on getting rid of an infection before I put her in psych ward and medicate/sedate her for the wrong reason.
Most antibiotics can be flavored - drug stores do it for kids all the time and will do it for adults too.
Just my opinion, but if they know she has ongoing infection and their recommendation is to 'get her meds straight' at a psych hospital, sounds to me like she's gonna come back with the perfect amount of sedation to be seen and not heard by staff. Quieter means she sleeps more and doesn't ask for things.
has to pay more then the standard pay of 12 or 15 dollars an hr.
If the pill is small, she will swallow the medicine, IF she is told what it is for.
As for the UTI s, she needs antibiotics specific to the bacteria causing it. Is there a doctor on staff?
Best wishes.
In any case, though, they could kick her out for being unmanageable, so best to follow the snf’s suggestion before they make it a mandate.
Here is the link to an NIH article about UTI and "care homes".
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6629391/
Your sister probably feels physically horrible and is confused. Just shoving food with crushed up pills at her and then acting like they've done their jobs is ridiculous.
What someone can do is to begin by making sure that your sister doesn't currently have another UTI and if so, then treating her and getting her well. Also, begin to make sure that she stays hydrated. If all of that is taken care of, then figure out a way to get her to take her meds.
If she is yelling all day, what is she saying? Is anyone taking note? Or is she being ignored because she's yelling?
It can be a long road to getting her in better condition but it can be done.
With my Mom, they catherized her to get all the urine out of her bladder. The problem with older women, their bladder does not fully void. She was on IV antibiotics for 2 or 3 days. Then, she was placed on probiotics and cranberry tablets to help deter an occurance of a UTI. She lived about a year after this and did not have another UTI.
I don't understand a Psyhic hospital if the UTI has not been properly addressed. To me, if the UTI is not being cleared up by using pills, then they send her to a reg hospital. You have a right to demand this. You have a right to call 911 to take her but then may lose the bed. This is life and death. Sister can becone septic and that could kill her.
D-Mannose can be found on Amazon - Now or Solaray brands, and many more.
See also: "Why d-Mannose May Be as Efficient as Antibiotics in the Treatment of Acute Uncomplicated Lower Urinary Tract Infections—Preliminary Considerations and Conclusions from a Non-Interventional Study" --- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8944421/
Yes, she may lose her place in line for a bed. I can't imagine that there is a choice here.
Also, there is no other solution than to try to make her accept meds -- whatever it takes. My cousin (68 at the time) has early onset ALZ. She got a UTI and wouldn't take the antibiotics. Her son had to physically hold her while someone took them to the ER (she was clawing and fighting him). She ended up staying in the psych ward for several weeks but eventually took the antibiotics, cleared the UTI and was also put on meds for depression/anxiety.
If your sister doesn't go to the psych ward and at least get her UTI under control she will 100% have some other bigger problem, like sepsis, which can be life-threatening and for which she will need to be hospitalized anyway.
Are you your sister's PoA? If not and she doesn't have one, then she should be taken to the ER where you will go with her and ask for a social worker to talk about court-assigned guardianship. A guardian will manage her affairs financial and otherwise, and apply for Medicaid for her, etc. You will then not have to stress over her care and can just have your time together with her. If she doesn't have a PoA and you don't wish to become her guardian, then this is really the only other option.
Her cognitive function may improve some after the UTI is better.