My father is 81 and has lived in a care facility near me for the last few years. He has Parkinson's disease with significant cognitive impact due to hearing loss and years of living by himself. Normally, I visit with him three times a week. We usually take a walk either inside or outside depending on the weather, to get him exercise and to get him out of his room for a change of environment.
Then came the corona-virus/Covid 19 pandemic. Because of the potential impact on senior communities, the facility my dad is at basically stopped any visitation. So for the last 80+ days, I have been unable to visit him. Then, two weeks ago, he fell in his room and hit his head. I met him at the emergency room. He had an abrasion on the side of his head but was otherwise okay. Three more falls in the last two weeks, with two more trips to the emergency room has been more difficult. Each time, I can see that the cognitive effects of the Parkinson's has had more impact. The disease is progressing at a more rapid pace. After the last trip to the hospital, he could not even stand on his own anymore.
Would this be happening if I had been able to continue my normal visits? It was only six hours of my time per week, but it forced him to interact with me, get vertical, and move those muscles. With total isolation except for necessary interaction with the staff, his world is very small. No exercise means the muscle atrophy has accelerated. He has become a victim of the pandemic; not the sickness itself, but the quarantine.
It does bring into question the death figures we see debated in the press. Maybe we need more definition in the data. Death directly linked to the virus, death to other causes where the virus is present, and death due to the quarantine impact.
I am so sorry that you have been unable to see your father and continue your regular visits with him. I have been regularly thinking about these extended effects. My in-laws are in their 80s and in a phased retirement community. Everything is blocked off. We cannot visit them (we’re a full day’s drive, adding to the complication). Fortunately they are dong okay, but what about when they are not?
ReplyDeleteThe effects of this pandemic go well beyond the official number counts.
That must be very difficult that you cannot easily see your father.
ReplyDeleteMy grandparents are also stuck in their house. My grandma is almost 90 and my grandfather is 88. Before the quarantine, my grandfather used to go out and about often. He remained active and still went to work. Now he is stuck at home. I worry about the impact quarantine is having on him.
My grandmother is in an assisted living home. She thrives on social interaction and has declined rapidly since the quarantine started. If she were at home, she could've had more visitors and accepted the risk. But, where she is, visitors risk her and all the other vulnerable people around her. It's a frustrating situation.
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