Dear members of Grace, I really could use your help.
My mother-in-law has stage IV NSLC and is in the very final stages of her fight with cancer. At this point, all we can do is palliative care. After being in the hospital for over 2 of the last 3 weeks, she got discharged this evening into the care of a hospice company -- Faith & Hope Hospice. But they seem completely disorganized and have left us really upset. They don't have her pain medication ready, did not have an adequate bed delivered, and are giving nonsensical excuses for their failure to do any of these. My mother-in-law is in pain and this is the last thing she needs. Hospice should have been to help ease her pain and discomfort, not to aggravate both.
So, for anyone in the Los Angeles area, does anyone have any recommendations for a good hospice company? We hired Faith & Hope because they had a caregiver who could speak Korean, but at this point, it is far more important to have a competent hospice. Thank you all so much!
Reply # - March 25, 2013, 09:42 PM
Reply To: Hospice In The Los Angeles Recommendation
I'm sorry this is outside of my range, being 1000 miles away, but I hope you can get an answer to this question from people in the area.
-Dr. West
Reply # - March 25, 2013, 10:51 PM
Reply To: Hospice In The Los Angeles Recommendation
Thank you Dr. West. Today was a pretty traumatic day, and moving beds took so much out of her.
Reply # - March 26, 2013, 10:19 AM
Reply To: Hospice In The Los Angeles Recommendation
Silverado Hospice - - (866) 552-8125. We found them to be excellent.
Best wishes,
Laya
P.S. We fired the first hospice group we hired as well. They too seemed completely incompetent and were very poor communicators.
Reply # - March 26, 2013, 10:36 AM
Reply To: Hospice In The Los Angeles Recommendation
Hi Layla,
Thank you so much. As luck would have it, I'm meeting with Silverado in an hour or so, and your recommendation just solidifies that as the choice for us.
Layla, I was actually trying to send you a private message because your tremendous heart comes through so vividly in your posts, but I don't believe there is a PM option yet. If I could impose on you, would you mind if my wife contacted you since she is going through what you went through in December? I'm sorry if this sounds inappropriate, but she feels so alone because she has no one around her who can comprehend what she is going through. I'm doing all that I can to support her and my mother-in-law, but it is still different. She has no siblings, and other than me, she has no one to help her. To top it off, my wife is 8-months pregnant, and her mom will unlikely see her new granddaughter.
My wife posts here under the screen name meanie11. She had mentioned how she religiously kept up-to-date with the status of your mom because she felt an affinity to your experience. I'm not sure how she could reach you, but if you add yahoo.com to the end of her screen name, you can reach her. If there is a way that she can contact you by email, she could do that too. She's at her mother's home right now so I'm reaching out on her behalf. Again, my apologies for such an abrupt and out-of-left-field request, but I truly believe she could gain so much from you at this time. And I know this is not the easiest time for you either, so I'm even more reluctant to ask, but I feel I must do something to help her at this time.
Thank you all so much!
Reply # - March 26, 2013, 10:49 AM
Reply To: Hospice In The Los Angeles Recommendation
Hi dwhang:
No problem at all. . .I will e-mail her with my contact information right now. She is more than welcome to call me or e-mail me ANYTIME. I'd love to speak with her. . .and I am so very sorry that both you and her are dealing with this horrible disease.
But, I'm glad you already had an appointment with Silverado lined-up. If they do for you what they did for us, I think you will see a marked difference (for the better) between your existing hospice group and them.
Take care,
Laya
Reply # - March 26, 2013, 10:56 AM
Reply To: Hospice In The Los Angeles Recommendation
Thank you so much Layla. Your generosity is so incredibly touching, and I hope that we will somehow be able to return the favor. I'm actually about to leave to go meet with Silverado, and so far, they have been spectacular. Words are inadequate to express my gratitude to you (and to everyone on this wonderful site).