Women with multiple diagnoses and no family

[gkriegs77gmail.com]

I am working with a man who is taking care of a friend who has cirrhosis of the liver and is on dialysis! Up until recently she couldn’t walk or dress herself and he has had dialysis in his home.

He is at the end of his rope and doesn’t want to take care of her anymore. I don’t want her to go into a long term hospital, because she won’t get the care she needs. She gets close to $989/month for disability. She cannot live by herself.

What other options are there? She is 61. She can’t go to a nursing home. The hospital gave her a Parkinson’s pill, which on certain days made her independent. What options are there in California?

Gabrielle Hochberg, MHA

[Anthony Douglas]

Hi Gabrielle,
I would look into hospice care at home. End stage liver disease is definitely a qualifying diagnosis. That might free the friend up from medical responsibility and will allow the patient to have a good quality of life with two terminal diagnoses. Sad case. Hope this helps.

Anthony Douglas, MD

[LBeck805]

Good suggestion, Anthony – I’d also encourage her to contact the Aging and Disability Resource Center in the area – they may be able to assist with alternate housing and non-medical services. She might qualify for case management through the insurance company that handles her Medi-Cal benefits (the Cal-AIM program) or a local non-profit.
Linda Beck
Square One Elder & Health Advocacy

[Michael Voss]

If her doctor’s / providers feel that her conditions give her a life expectancy of 6 months or less, yes a referral to Hospice would be a very good idea. At minimum, has she had a referral yet to Palliative Care? If she is not yet a hospice candidate, palliative care could be very helpful providing direction towards available resources in the community. If she does not already have a medical social worker on board with her case, this could also be very beneficial.

[Katy Orlando]

“She cannot live by herself”- From what I know, the issue with hospice or Palliative care is that they do not provide 24 hour care. Although these are all EXCELLENT resources, if she can’t care for herself or is not safe in the home, will they come on board? I believe it will depend on her abilities in the home without a care giver 24/7.

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