Today this is the exact report for my journal under the heading: My Bert.
The Care Conference went very well today. My Bert got a great report. If he was in grade school he would receive an A+.
What is even more important is that I gave the Home a very good mark also. My questions (I had notes) were all answered. My concerns were addressed and we arrived at solutions that were agreeable to all parties.
My Bert is eating well at 70 -100% of his meals. He eats 100% when I am with him and he is well hydrated as he drinks his liquids. We found a simple solution to my concerns about week four of the four week eating rotation.
The doctor was as usual professional, delivering advice, answering queries and giving explanations of medications and a history of Bert’s condition since the last Care Conference. This is all done with empathy and a degree of care not only for my Bert but for me too. I appreciate that.
The physiotherapist is focusing on both upper and lower body strength exercises and I do see the results whenever my Bert does programmes like Zumba, chair yoga and other group exercise sessions. Though wheelchair bound atrophy of the muscles is being slowed by physiotherapy.
Recreation reports are all positive. Bert participates well. He is ready for pet therapy, every kind of music programme, stretching classes, one on one activity and pampering, of course. Macular degeneration does not stop him from playing with the oversized jigsaw puzzles, blocks or cubes.
He loves picture books, especially if they are about cars, trains, airplanes and flowers and there is a good supply of them.
The nurse had only good things to say about his manner, his friendly behavior towards staff, his amiability and the ease with which he accepts the few medications he gets. She credits some of that to my daily visits. I wonder if she knows how vital those visits are to me also.
It all sounds great and it is, but I cannot help feeling sad as I realize we are both living in reverse. My Bert is childlike but not a child. I am both mother and father to my husband when all I want to be is a wife.
Creeping unheralded in the back of my mind is: Will there be another Care Conference? Will I be writing about a great report, a bad report or no report at all? Will I be wishing I still had a grandchild or perhaps a great grandchild in the form of a husband as I miss his presence?
The Meander: We are lucky to have Care Partners who care. They are the hardworking PSW’s and dedicated front line workers for whom the work is more than just a job. Yet I wish we did not need them. What a terrible disease.