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ConcernedSon

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Aug 26, 2016
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Loved one DX
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New York
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Staten Island
Hello,

My father has ALS and has no use of hands, legs, or torso muscles. His breathing, eating, and swallowing are okay for now. His wife is his primary caregiver and I help out when I can, but I work full time.

We've been trying to find a good aide to help care for him at home during the day. He's on medicaid and we tried several aides through a medicaid agency and craigslist. So far, no luck. Some of the aides said it was simply too much work for the very low amount they were getting paid ($11.50 per hour) and said they'd rather work with a patient that didn't need such constant care. It really is a huge amount of work as he needs something every 5-10 minutes (range of motion exercises, eating, drinking, moving blankets, changing channel, bathroom stuff, hygiene, etc.) Other aides were willing, but were either unprofessional or didn't get along with my father and his wife.

Has anyone had any luck finding a good aide who will work for medicaid pay? Is it just too much to ask for such low pay? I suggested that we supplement the pay but my dad's wife said the good aides will be requesting $25+ per hour which we just can't afford.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
 
It is really disgusting to hear that aides expect to come to work and not have to be busy the entire time. How many jobs are there where employees clock in and expect to have anything other than scheduled breaks? You won't get that as a store clerk, fast food worker, nurse, plumber, factory worker, teacher, doctor, dentist, or any other job below CEO! And it isn't as though the work was physically demanding. $11.50 an hour isn't enough to live off but until the minimum wage goes up, it is not bad for a job that isn't physically demanding nor requiring formal schooling.
 
I would post with CNA, nursing and pre-nursing programs there. Also ask around at clinics (all types), nursing homes, churches, community centers, attorneys, accountants and other service providers.

The problem goes back to who is an "aide." People who sign up to work for the State in Medicaid are not necessarily the best people to hire. There is also a class of person who considers it a full-time job in kind of a union light, that you get off craigslist, that is also undesirable (not all, but most).

A student or someone who is goal-oriented and sees it for the opportunity it is, you may do best with. And you will not have to pay $25 an hour. But you will probably have to hire multiple people to cover 5 days a week. If you find the right person, they may be able to sign up with Medicaid and then you could supplement as you say.
 
a local hospice service may be able to help with an aide, and it might be helpful to get hospice a little involved

Take care,

pat
 
Three years ago my friend's mother required round-the-clock care. She was in end-stage renal failure but on home dialysis. She could walk but wandered around so she needed constant attention, help bathing, help walking, cooking, etc. She lived with her granddaughter who was a paramedic and worked 10-hour shifts.

I went to the college and to the local newspapers and hometown news and found a dozen candidates. The granddaughter did the interviews and chose 4 of them. 3 worked out and they stuck it out for the 18 months until her death. We trained them to hook Nellie up to dialysis, unhook, meds, etc. They were all CNAs who were sick of working for an agency. They only asked for $10 an hour and, among the three, worked out their shifts, covered for one another, etc.

Daytona is a very low paying area for unskilled workers and there are many CNAs looking for work here (at least 3 years ago there were.)

Anyone with reasonable intelligence and a motivated personality can be trained to do what needs doing. You just have to be willing to set up interviews and have backups.
 
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