Up until the Spring of 2019 my 88 year old mother had enjoyed reasonably good health except for issues with moderate COPD and high blood pressure. This all went downhill as she started having recurring UTI’s, escalating difficulty with breathing at night, increasing edema in her legs, and prolonged nausea after eating. She had a fall, where a compression fracture was missed in her urgent care visit. After months of sleep deprivation and multiple physical discomforts and struggles she was very worn down and her family very concerned and uncertain as to what was going on with her.
Relief finally came when her pulmonologist diagnosed her with a heart condition and she was admitted into the hospital. We were very relieved to have a diagnosis but were left with lots of questions and still feeling uncertain about her whole health picture. A friend recommended Ready2Nurse for Mom’s follow-up Medicare visits.
From our first visits with Amy and May I found them to be professional, proactive and helpful. They processed the necessary paperwork with us-making it seem easy to get set up and started.
Their first interviews with Mom were comprehensive and thorough as they built a complete picture of Mom’s overall health. They took the time to get acquainted with Mom and encouraged her thoughts, feelings, and perspective on things. They listened to her input and responses attentively-and I felt their concern for her as their patient was sincere and genuine.
The impression that Mom was in good hands with Ready2Nurse continued in the months of care and support to follow. Mom had some further struggles ahead with getting the correct care for her CHF and then with a diagnosis of a bladder tumor! We found Amy’s medical knowledge to be very valuable during this time of uncertainty and worry. She could always review and explain what a specialist had told us and was just so helpful at clarifying medical information we had missed or hadn’t fully understood in the doctors office! She was great at reviewing lab-work, explaining what to expect from different procedures, and talking over concerns and issues for making some big decisions. She really alleviated anxiety and uncertainty for my Mom as she went through nuclear stress tests, TEE procedures and going under general anesthetic for surgery! Her encouragement and support really made a difference for Mom (and our family!))
In addition to her excellent support in navigating the health care system and giving us more confidence and clarity in the whole process, she provided strong practical support for daily living concerns. Quality of life is a key focus for Amy and she is resourceful and helpful with ideas and new things to try. Mom had avoided making very many changes in the home as she has been pretty active and felt comfortable with how things were. Amy and her wonderful OT Christa gradually and diplomatically encouraged Mom to implement some much needed improvements such as a much better shower and commode set-up. Mom told me it all feels more comfortable and easy now to be in and out of the shower and bathroom.
Very importantly, Mom had started to develop a pressure sore as she has to sit up at night to breathe. I had missed this and had no knowledge of them. Amy addressed it quickly and promptly. I was slow to buy the sacral pillow she recommended because I thought it looked uncomfortable and awkward and also thought the pressure sore was much better with the sheepskin pad we were trying! Amy and Christa patiently kept following up and checking and went to some trouble to find a pillow that would be the most soft and comfortable. When we finally tried it out it worked immediately-pain and discomfort gone. I was very appreciate and grateful for their patience and perseverance on this as Mom is much more comfortable at night now, not to mention avoiding a possible major problem with an out of hand pressure sore.
Having Amy checking in on Mom regularly to evaluate her vitals and overall status was very reassuring and comforting. She always took some time to really get a sense of how Mom was doing and offered lots of understanding, encouragement and support. She worked hard to improve the things that could be changed while being realistic about the problems that weren’t going away- and how to cope with them better.
We felt grateful that we had Ready2Nurse as our “partners in care” during a really difficult time for our Mom. We felt that Amy and her team provided excellent backup and support. They were responsive, caring and skillful in helping Mom back to better health and quality of life.
– Eileen