I volunteered at an "Assisted Living" home for about 2 years.
Now Assisted living is supposed to be quite different from a nursing home. These people are allowed to have jobs, and leave the home as they please
and return when they please. However, a lot of these people would come in rather healthy, and due to the neglect and mistreatment of the staff their
health would begin to falter. So in turn, the Assisted Living has turned into a nursing home or a hospice where people go there to basically fade away
and die.
Specifically I knew a lady that was living there, and she used to be a model when she was younger. She showed me all of her pictures and I'd listen to
her talk for hours about her modeling career. It was so interesting to me, as this was what I'd wanted to do aswell. After awhile, she began to change
from her normal, happy dispositon, to this depressive state. Seeing the transition was awful. Her kids would no longer visit her, and she told me she
knew they were waiting for her to "shrivel up and die" so they could collect her high amount of life insurance.
I cried for her many a time, and I was always so worried about her...
I came in one day to check on her, and she wasn't in her room. So I figured maybe she was in the dining hall, or outside enjoying a cigarette. I
looked all around and still couldn't see her anywhere. So I asked the Staff "Do you know where ##name removed##has gone off to?"
I was told she'd hung herself from the rung in the shower. It hurt me so bad to hear that, I wanted to find her family's contact information and give
them hell. But, I knew it would do no good because she was where she wanted to be, she was in a better place. I know everyone says that, but that
Assisted Living home became her own personal hell.
I refuse to ever put my grandmother in a nursing home, I do not trust her in the hands of any staff, anywhere no matter how great they say they are. I
will take care of her myself regardless of how hard it is, it is never a burden because she basically raised me, she never abandoned me and I would
never abandon her and throw her in some home in her time of need.
I just wonder people's thinking processes when they drop off their own mother's and father's at these homes, their pappies and grammies
Just so sad
to me
edit on 15-3-2012 by GreenEyedVixen because: (no reason given)
edit on Thu Mar 15 2012 by DontTreadOnMe because: (no
reason given)