AGING IN THE NEWS

SOMETIMES YOU CAN GO HOME AGAIN:
Leaving the Nursing Home

By Florence Rosner for Aging in the News, WI Dept. of Health & Family Services

Alice smiles when she says, "I never thought anyone left a nursing home except to attend their own funeral." She smiles because she did leave and is now enjoying her life in a small apartment back in the town she had lived in for almost 60 years.

When Alice went into a nursing home, she was not enjoying life. Her health was failing-she could no longer take care of herself or her apartment. Her daughter and her care manager agreed that she could no longer stay at home. Due to a long waiting list for funding, she could not get the services that would enable her to live alone.

After eight months in the nursing home, Alice's condition had improved remarkably. With rehabilitation therapy her legs were stronger, and she could now walk more easily using her walker. Her appetite had improved; she had more energy and could do more for herself. She was more alert than she had been.

When she heard about the Wisconsin Community Relocation Initiative, Alice wanted to look into it. She was not unhappy in the nursing home: staff were kind to her, the food was good, and she had some new friends. But it wasn't her own home. She missed the children playing behind her apartment building. She missed her garden. Mainly, she missed the idea that she still had some time to live out in the world. She called her county care manager to find out if she was eligible to move back into the community.

The nursing home relocation program was initiated by Governor Doyle to give elders and persons with disabilities an opportunity to receive their long-term care at home or in an apartment or other community living arrangement if they so choose and if their care needs can be met. In the year since the program started, more than 650 older people and those with physical disabilities have moved from a nursing home into the community.

The program is available to people who live in a nursing home with their care paid for by Medicaid. They must be over age 65 or have a physical disability and an ongoing need for long-term care services. They must either have been in the nursing home for at least 100 days or are expected to be there that long.

After Alice's phone call, her former care manager met with her to assess her eligibility for relocation. It was important to discuss Alice's health care needs, to find out what she could do and what she could not do for herself, and where she would be going to live.

There is a happy ending: Alice wanted to go back to her old apartment building. She was able to do that and received help to replace the necessities that were now gone. The nursing home and the care manager helped her move and get settled in her new apartment. They made sure that she got the services and help that she needs. Alice is so pleased that her daughter saved her rocking chair. She says, "This feels like home again."

Last Revised: December 27, 2007