S/O from some other posts

[Anonymous]

Multiple posts having to do with end of life and hospice, therapy for alheimers patients . . .

It is something I had already been thinking of but what do folks who are alone (either never married, no kids and spouse predeceases, no family, etc.) do for end of life? Esp for chronic conditions? How does a lone elderly person manage Alzheimers, for example? These situations seem dauting for a family but would be magnified, if not impossible, for a single person.

What support is there for those people????

[Anonymous]

Area Agency on Aging is what you're looking for.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Area Agency on Aging is what you're looking for.

What does this mean?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Area Agency on Aging is what you're looking for.

What does this mean?

I think it's an answer to what the poster thinks OP is looking for (what to do) rather than what the OP seemed to be about (which was more pondering)

OP, I've wondered the same thing myself, especially as my mother's memory starts to fail (not Alzheimer's, but still a problem). She lives in a CCRC, so she's much better positioned than she would be if she still lived at home, and yet I wonder about her former neighbor, a single guy of limited means who is either in AL or SN now. I don't think he had hired someone to help with finances back when he could have handed it off in stages, I don't remember him ever having company, so I don't know what he does for all the things my siblings and I handle for my mom. I assume CCRC volunteers and staff handle things, but it's an issue.

[Anonymous]

Honestly? None, because unless the person is well enough to help themselves by making calls, seeking help (which is all logistically difficult), then they don't get help. Even with family, people can refuse help.

[Anonymous]

Having studied this, I would say that the options are 1) not have needs met; 2) rely on friendships and other networks built in life as a single person to get care; and/or 3) be more reliant on nursing home care.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Honestly? None, because unless the person is well enough to help themselves by making calls, seeking help (which is all logistically difficult), then they don't get help. Even with family, people can refuse help.

Ok, so people with dementia (or worse) just are discovered dead in their homes/apartments one day?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly? None, because unless the person is well enough to help themselves by making calls, seeking help (which is all logistically difficult), then they don't get help. Even with family, people can refuse help.

Ok, so people with dementia (or worse) just are discovered dead in their homes/apartments one day?

They could be, absolutely, if no neighbor calls police to check. If they do come and check, they will take the person to the hospital and handle it with social services.

[Anonymous]

I plan to kill myself when I start going downhill significantly. Hopefully it happens slowly enough that I have time but will basically research current options if/when I get a diagnosis or reach a certain physical age. I will have money set aside for paying for it (cremation - no need for a funeral or grave - nobody would go anyway).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly? None, because unless the person is well enough to help themselves by making calls, seeking help (which is all logistically difficult), then they don't get help. Even with family, people can refuse help.

Ok, so people with dementia (or worse) just are discovered dead in their homes/apartments one day?

I've heard of it happening. My sister lived in an apartment complex where someone had moved to be closer to their kids, and the kids didn't care. Someone called about the smell.

[Anonymous]

People, elder law practitioner here. This is what guardianships are for. The local court appoints a guardian who manages the ward and gets paid from the ward's assets. If the money runs out, government assistance.

Literally not a single PP thought that there should be government programs in place for such persons.

I'm from a part of Europe where every hospital has a social service on the lookout for people in need, not to mention the municipal government services.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: People, elder law practitioner here. This is what guardianships are for. The local court appoints a guardian who manages the ward and gets paid from the ward's assets. If the money runs out, government assistance.

Literally not a single PP thought that there should be government programs in place for such persons.

I'm from a part of Europe where every hospital has a social service on the lookout for people in need, not to mention the municipal government services.

But how does this happen if the person has to family to obtain a guardianship? And do our hospitals have these services?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: People, elder law practitioner here. This is what guardianships are for. The local court appoints a guardian who manages the ward and gets paid from the ward's assets. If the money runs out, government assistance.

Literally not a single PP thought that there should be government programs in place for such persons.

I'm from a part of Europe where every hospital has a social service on the lookout for people in need, not to mention the municipal government services.

But how does this happen if the person has to family to obtain a guardianship? And do our hospitals have these services?

PP here. The guardian does not have to be (and in many cases should not be) a family member, but a social worker or a lawyer, etc. Anybody, such as a physician, can notify the court.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: People, elder law practitioner here. This is what guardianships are for. The local court appoints a guardian who manages the ward and gets paid from the ward's assets. If the money runs out, government assistance.

Literally not a single PP thought that there should be government programs in place for such persons.

I'm from a part of Europe where every hospital has a social service on the lookout for people in need, not to mention the municipal government services.

But how does this happen if the person has to family to obtain a guardianship? And do our hospitals have these services?

PP here. The guardian does not have to be (and in many cases should not be) a family member, but a social worker or a lawyer, etc. Anybody, such as a physician, can notify the court.

Thank you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: People, elder law practitioner here. This is what guardianships are for. The local court appoints a guardian who manages the ward and gets paid from the ward's assets. If the money runs out, government assistance.

Literally not a single PP thought that there should be government programs in place for such persons.

I'm from a part of Europe where every hospital has a social service on the lookout for people in need, not to mention the municipal government services.

In the US, guardianship laws in many states enable financial abuse of elders, and the lawyers are in on it.

And while hospitals in the US have staff to see if elderly patients have a safe home to return to, some patients lie/speak from optimism rather than facts, and staff doesn't necessarily have time to follow up on all their claims about how well they manage on their own and how much help they get or can get.