UPDATE on our friend GARY

Talked to His family; then to Gary a minute ago. He is in a nursing home/rehab center. He says it's awful....bugs...filth...bad staff. That's a typical nursing home from my experience. Last week he couldn't get out of bed. This morning, he walked 150 feet. If he can do that tomorrow, he intends to walk out of the place on Friday. It's the same home he took his daughter out of years ago because of inadequate care.

I've been an advocate for Nursing Home Reform for many years, and I know what Gary's going through. This makes me feel so useless. I just don't know what to do to help.

I will call tomorrow and let you know what's up.


Russ

thanks sooo much for the update.

That sounds terrible. Gather that place must be his only option?
Thank you for the update.

(One thing I don’t envy you guys over there, is your health system.)

Thanks for the update. I hope Gary writes some reviews of the place to the right people. Its a shame he can't have a choice to go to a new place.
Give his family our best .

It is so sad and wrong for a first class person to get such horrible treatment. I could tell stories from the mid 90s on my grandmothers treatment in a similar home. You would think things would be better 25 years later.

I hope Gary continues to get stronger and is able to dump that place. Hopefully he can get some in-home care so his progress keeps getting better. We all know Gary is a trooper. Go get em, man!!! -charley

Gary. Thinking of you from the UK. Graham UK

Best wishes to Gary. Sorry to hear all of this. I've been at enough nursing homes/assisted living to know I would never want to have to stay at one, even the so called upscale ones leave much to be desired.

Hmmmm, is anyone really "illegal"? Do you mean the prospective IMMIGRANT who has risked everything to provide a safe haven for his family, free from abject poverty, gang violence, and in many cases, an oppressive communist regime. Coming to the border and requesting asylum is perfectly legal in this country, as far as I know. So how did he suddenly become "illegal". What happened to the 'Christian Values' that implore you to help the less fortunate (feed the hungry, clothe the naked). Does that only apply if they happen to come from northern, eastern, western EUROPE?

In America, where we end up in our senior years depends a lot on the decisions we made prior to getting old. We (my wife and I), like so many others, failed to get long-term care insurance. As a consequence, during the 2+ years that my wife was in a nursing home/memory care center, I had to pay $72,000/yr (6k/mo) out of pocket. Luckily, we had the resources to do it but many (most?) seniors don't. Thus, the value of getting long-term-care insurance if you're still young enough to qualify for it. A very wise investment.

BTW, isn't Gary a veteran? The VA pays for all my medical needs and I don't even have to go to a VA facility (my age and the fact that I live more than 40 miles from the VA hospital). They have placed me with top notch upscale local medical facilities and pay 100% of the tab. I'm wondering if Gary has explored all of his VA benefits. They have changed (increased) a lot over the last few years but you need to be aggressive in seeking them out.

Sorry to bring up this "Illegal" stuff (actually, I didn't bring it up), but it really saddens me that a segment of our country has come to hate and demonize the very thing we were founded upon and cherished. Hmmm, I wonder who started that.

chas

I think many people feel sorry for their plight, but with all of the gang activity and drug dealing, they are afraid of unvetted immigrants. Requesting asylum is one thing, and the right thing, but to open the flood gates and have everyone running accross the border is a recipe for disaster.

It is a shame the world has become so evil that we cannot use the same criteria as the Ellis Island days you alluded to, and even then they were subject to quotas, etc.

Bernie, as usual I agree with you 100% in that I think what you're saying is that the immigration screening system and indeed, the entire immigration system needs a MAJOR overhaul. Yes, sadly quotas are probably a necessary part of a successful immigration system, and that's because NO country has unlimited resources to help ALL of the world's disenfranchised. Also, the burden, and it is a burden, should be shared/distributed throughout the country and not just borne by the border states. But that would be part of the re-vamping process of the immigration system.

I also applaud you for showing empathy instead of hate for these poor people and pointing out what should be obvious to most people; that for the most part, the problem is the system, not the poor people trying to navigate it. I say, whichever party you belong to, let's all push our elected officials to make immigration reform one of our highest priorities.

I'm not religious, as you know, but I do believe in the "do unto others...." philosophy.

chas

Gary's plight is a real bummer for me. I have been active in a nursing home reform movement and been in lots of places just like where Gary is.


I have dealt with the "for profit" lobbyists and lawyers who defend the homes.

A really sad part of our society.

Let's hope Gary gets out of there ASAP!

Russ

Chas
BINGO
Over and out

We can afford to do both. So typical that you can’t find it in your heart to be sympathetic to the elderly without being unsympathetic to immigrants.

Originally Posted By jingleman
This is so backwards. We give illegals cell phones, free health care and housing, and we send our elderly to dumps when they need help the most. Hang in there Gary and get the hell out of that place.
Mitch"


It is backward to any decent person, but decency seems not to be considered in this frothy political environment. VOTES count more, and the poor elderly are but a casualty of war.

I too feel bad for poor Gary. He doesn't deserve this.

Personally, I’d like to challenge anyone on this forum to go to an immigration center, don’t speak a word of English, and see what smartphone they give you, what hospital they give you for free, and post some pictures of the nice housing you get for free…

Or maybe you should just ask yourself why you want to believe that they are being treated better than you? Does it legitimize your xenophobia?

Here’s the ACTUAL truth… what little we spend on immigrants is a drop in the ocean compared to what we give away to huge corporations and billionaires. But you bring up the immigrants rather than billionaires and corporate greed as the cause of why elderly care is so bad.

Ask yourself why you are doing that? Yep… it’s got nothing to do with solving the problem. But it sure makes you feel better about disliking immigrants.

I guess I was wrong; KUM-BA-YAH

Well, I think everyone knows where I stand, but for the good of the forum, I think we should shut this down, at least here on the main forum.

chas

I may have been a bit snarky, but that was my intent by telling a blatant lie.

It’s impossible to discern when someone is telling a blatant lie when half of this country believes 100% in the blatant lies fed to them by the billionaire class.

I wonder if Gary thinks his plight is the result of some immigrant getting somewhere awful to stay in, or the greed of the company and industry that runs his hospice?

Any update on Gary this week?

Talked to Gary yesterday. He's going home today...this afternoon. Glad as hell to be out of where he's been.

Sounds pretty good!

Stay tuned!


R.

+1 👍

🙏🙏🙏

YAY!

Nice. Good News. Thank for the update Russ

I got home Thursday afternoon, stopped on the way for a bacon-cheeseburger (OMG that tasted good) walked in the front door, gave my wife a hug and kiss and vowed I would never go back to that Hell Hole they put me in. The only thing positive about that facility was the physical therapy department, which really worked hard to get me in shape to walk out the entrance to Hell. The food was inedible, the care depended on who was working that particular shift, and I lost an average of a pound a day. When I walked out the door, I was 60 pounds lighter that when I went in for the original surgery.

Chas, while I am a vet and 100 percent service connected disability, I live just 25 miles from the nearest VA hospital, therefore the 40 mile rule does not apply. Unfortunately, the VA didn't have a coli-rectal surgeon there with the experience to take care of my fistula and said I would have to see an outside specialist, which I did. Fortunately, I also carry a medicare supplemental plan "F" which thus far has covered all but $1,300 of the $100,000 hospital and surgical charges. Not sure how much of the nursing home charges they will cover.

During the next two months I must get myself in the best physical shape I can so I can undergo the reversal of the colostomy, which is just about a difficult as the initial procedure. The greatest danger is the anesthesia because of my lousy lungs. The anesthesia department at Greater Baltimore Medical Center is very good, but if they lose me on the operating table, the next stop for me is the Anatomy Lab of the University of Maryland School of Medicine. No funeral expenses, they do the cremation at no cost and send me home in a box. I told my wife and children to take some money out of my checking account and retirement funds and throw the biggest damned wake they can. Then dump my ashes in Chesapeake Bay.

Thanks everyone, for the well wishes,

Gary

Wow Gary, this is the best 'good news' post in a long while. You sound like your old self so that's a good sign. I'd take it easy on those bacon-cheeseburgers though, unless you're anxious to go back in . Russ did a nice job of keeping us informed of your progress (for which we were all very grateful). Get some rest, get your strength back up, and lay off the bacon cheese-burgers (or at least leave the bacon off ).

chas

Welcome back, Gary! 🙏

Great to hear from you Gary. Though its not how you want to do it, I'm sure the weight loss helps.

Great to hear you are back home Gary.

Great to hear you are home Gary! Keep working hard you are one tough cookie!

Great to hear you're back home Gary. 👍
Best wishes for a good and rapid recovery!

Good job getting home Gary and continued best wishes for a full recovery.

Good to hear you're home Gary. Take it easy and build yourself up again.

Russ

Home Sweet Home!! Don't I know too!

So glad you are better and at home. -charley

Charley, always good to hear from you. How did you fare during the Hurricane? I always worry about you when I see a storm rolling through your area and know that you have a vast collection of keyboards and organs.

All the best,

Gary