I could use some sound advice from someone not emotionally attached!

My humble opinion is only if they let you stay with him every minute and for every test. I used to have to fight with them to not put an iv in Mom's arm. They will try every thing possible to put an iv in when it is not necessary because they are told to do this at all costs. If you are not there it will be a horrible situation for him. Please let us know what you decide. Can you get him on hospice quickly so they will come to your home to check on him? You have to be careful with them too because they seem to want to give the death cocktail of atavan and morphine. I am wishing you and your Sweetie the best and dont forget to give him lots of hugs.

I think you answered your own question. He is 83 nd has serious physical problems and behaviors - and he has Alzheimers and it can be most difficult and pure hell to take care of them as they get worse. If this man is sick, and he sounds quite ill, I would not keep him away from the hospital. Once they release him, they have to put him somewhere. If you insist, you'll get him back. But my question is this......with Alzheimer's, and it will get worse, what will happen to you as I doubt you are a bouncy 20 year old. Are you prepared for what this entails? Personally, given age and mental issues, I think he would be safer in a facility where he can be cared for; you have a normal life; and you can visit and be with him otherwise. Please think about it. It is not safe like it is described above.

Take him to ER & then talk to his Nurse & Dr on phone. Then take it from there. Use it as opportunity to get him into facility Dementia gets worse…Hugs 🤗

I worked many years in a hospital and once would have agreed with those who say take him to the ER. But the ER is not always the best place if a person is not bleeding or having a heart attack or is in need of a respirator. Too many people nowadays use it instead of a doctors office which means ERs tend to be understaffed, requiring patients to wait sometimes for hours.

He DOES need medical care, but if you are up to it, and if you can get your Dr. to agree, you may be able to care for him at home. Call your physician and express your concern. He may insist on a hospital admission, but if you explain the situation and he has confidence in you, he may agree to home care. Or at least admit him to the hospital bypassing the ER.

It certainly sounds like he has pneumonia, which is the greatest threat (even more than COVID). The Pulse-ox meter is essential (it fits on a finger). It's possible to give him oxygen at home if you have instruction, and antibiotics are a MUST. I think you would still need some nursing assistance, even at home. Sounds like he needs 24/7 care.
Hospice is not for "curing", but for only for making death more comfortable. They would probably not take him in his present condition.

I wish you both the best. You have my prayers!

Call his doctor and tell him exactly what you just posted. If he has pneumonia he needs an antibiotic and possibly an inhaler. Good luck… I totally “ get it”…. It’s a tough call and you are doing your best💜

Covid vaccination does not confer a 100% shield against Covid. There have been many cases of Covid infections in vaccinated people even with a booster. The only way to know if he has Covid or not is by having the test. Even if the test is negative, he could still die from a plain pneumonia.

Helen4sure: Your post, which I am just viewing two days after you'd posted, is a medical emergency. Please call EMS posthaste since your Sweetie could have developed Covid Pneumonia. He will require IV medications in order to get well and that YOU cannot provide at home. Deep prayers sent, dear Helen. Also, please come back to the forum to update us on your very ill husband.

Take him to ER
my mom is 89 and was so sick ( blocked bowel) not the same but she could have died.. I hate the ER but you’ll get a room upstairs that you can visit with him and he’ll have round the clock care-
if you call an ambulance you won’t have to wait in the ER- with all the other sick people-
I hope your sweetheart recovers- so lucky to have you-🙏❤️

You don't need Forum advice, you need to immediately consult your family doctor. Depending on where you live, a Health hotline may be available.

COVID is bad enough and pneumonia could be worse. A chest X-ray might help diagnose pneumonia if he has it and you cannot ignore the pneumonia; it could become septic.
We hope you have taken him to the ER or hospital by now. That's where he needs to be. If he gets any sicker at home, he could die and then you'd never see him again, either.

I agree with Submarinesally below...you cannot take a chance with pneumonia. Tell docs that he's anxious, and they'll give him something to calm him, so they can treat him...usually he needs IV fluids and antibiotics, otherwise pneumonia gets worse, or turns into sepsis, and deadly. and he prob. needs oxygen also. DON'T WAIT. Tell him you love him, and you want him to live! Then let the docs take care of him with what's needed. You can always zoom with him. I doubt if they'll let you stay w/him. Also you can tell docs that you prefer that he get treated and released, if that's advisable. God Bless you, and God Speed his quick recovery.

Have the three day test to make sure he is positive. If he has pneumonia he needs to be in the hospital setting. If he is COVID positive he also needs hospital care. If you contract COVID you’ll both be screwed.

Tough decision but pneumonia is nothing to fool around with especially being Covid + too.

Call his primary & seek advice. There are mobile x-ray units that can come to your home. A chest x-ray will help his doctor decide whether an ER trip is needed. Maybe he can get meds from primary and breathing treatments @ home?

Good luck.

Not treating severe covid normally results in fewer choices and a higher probability of dying in an excruciating untreated way.

You are still in a two day window from your initial post. The ER has the highest likelihood of having the one monoclonal antibody that still works, that has Pavloxid, and that can administer remdesivir.

That alone might keep him from an actual admit. And if admitted, then that alone might keep him from having more than a short hospital stay.

I think you should take him to the hospital and see if he may be admitted for treatment. He has a better chance in trained medical hands.
If you keep him at home and, God forbid, something happens to him, you may also never see him again.
So, take him where he, at least, has a chance of receiving the care that he needs right now. And, you know what, take him to the hospital fast. Every second counts!

I can tell you what I did when both myself and my 94 yo mother got Covid in November. As soon as I tested positive - with an antigen test - I tested my mother and she was positive. I immediately called a local independent pharmacist and asked for names of doctors who would prescribe Ivermectin. They gave me 3 names and I contacted each one. The first one to return my call sent me an intake - I paid the fee for a telemed - and she prescribed everything we needed to recover. The next thing I did was to find a local medical facility that would administer monoclonal antibodies. I asked them if they would come to my home because getting my mother to them would have been next to impossible. They had a paramedic come to my home and administer the antibodies that evening.

When the paramedic arrived, they took vitals and because my mother's O2 had dropped into the 70s they said that the CDC protocol prevented them from administering the antibodies. They recommended that I have her transported to the hospital for "comfort care" and a ventilator. I flat out refused.

When the saw I was serious they decided to break protocol and give the antibodies but told me that my mother would die within 24-48 hours.

So that night I slept with her and gradually she has recovered. She is sitting at the kitchen table with me right now as I type this and is as healthy as can be.

You have to take things in to your own hands. Her regular doctor did nothing to help her. Nothing. He knew she had covid and he offered no help - not even vitamin D.

I did hound him to order home health and how my mother has physical therapy, occupational therapy and a nurse who checks in every week.

I am convinced that if I had sent my mother to the hospital that night, she would not be here now.

Peace.

Can you call his regular doctor to see what he/she recommends? Maybe this will give you some insight into what avenue to pursue? I wish you the best and will pray for you and your husband.

This sounds so familiar. I had almost the Same exact happen with my husband. Yelling, putting gout the IV’s, you name it he did it. Didn’t have Covid nor pneumonia, just the Mixed Dementia.

Let the doctors and nurses handle it. They know what is best for him. I came to the conclusion that I am not able to what is best for him. I was worried but the hospital staff had him under control and he received the care I was unable to give me nor was I capable of.

Assuming he is able to speak on his behalf about being sent to ER/refusing, if I were you I would go through EMS/911 for a wellness check by paramedics to check his vitals if nothing else. They may give a recommendation, but will not force him to go to ER. At least to get familiar with the triage process and to understand how they navigate Covid + patients.

I encourage you to stay open minded in this process!

You can definitely hire Private Duty Nursing, but that is almost exclusively pay out of pocket.

You definitely have to call his doctor and see what their opinion is. Perhaps a zoom meeting and please take his pulse ox. Your doctor should be able to tell you all the things you need to treat at home, if possible to treat at home.

Also they may be able to suggest an at home physicians service that may come into the home.

Also please take care of yourself. I know you are worried about your husband, but taking care of yourself is taking care of him. If you get sick, what happens to him??????

Stay Inspired and sending blessings your way

Shonda

Helen,

I am an RN. Please take your husband to the ER to be properly diagnosed. He needs a medical exam, chest x-ray and labs. From there you will know how to proceed. If you husband does have pneumonia, he will need antibiotics, probably IV and later switched to oral. Pneumonia in itself is very serious in older and/or otherwise compromised patients. Much, much better to begin treating at the beginning. And check yourself. Have you tested? Are you negative? If so, you'd probably be able to stay with him in the hospital.

Also, if you keep your husband at home, you may very well become ill yourself and could end up with both of you in the hospital.

Please let us all know how you both are doing.

There are some doctors that treat Covid at home so that patients can avoid hospitalization and death. I know you want the best for your husband. I agree that pneumonia is a serious threat for elderly patients. The fever (from Covid? from pneumonia?) will dehydrate him if he doesn't get enough fluids. My 82 year old husband got pneumonia in 2016 (before Covid). I accompanied him to the ER where he was treated and discharged the next day. I think he got antibiotics. Dick didn't have dementia, but he had a severe phobia about hospitals where he felt neglected and abused. He wanted to avoid them at all costs. The only way he would tolerate the hospital is if I was there to immediately respond to his demands for water, for bathroom, for turning down the light, etc. Is that a possibility for your husband? Will the hospital accept your remaining present while your husband is treated? After my husband was discharged, his doctor called us and informed us that he tested positive for sepsis and had to go back to be treated with intravenous antibiotics. He could die! We debated and decided to treat at home with high dose vitamin C (40 grams in divided doses). He recovered from pneumonia but was still at the end of life with cancer, diabetes, atrial fibrillation, heart failure, severe anemia. The hospital placed him on Hospice care which was wonderful for us. We went back a few months later when he again developed pneumonia. He again recovered, but got it again. This time, he died peacefully in his sleep. He was so frail. His heart condition probably couldn't tolerate the fever and probably it stopped beating from a cardiac arrest. Can you consult by phone with your doctor? Learn the risks of pneumonia. How sick do you have to be in order to need hospitalization. It seems your best strategy is to avoid hospitalization until it is no longer possible to treat at home and then accompany him to get IV drip, IV antibiotics and return home as soon as you can with more antibiotics. Can you be with him in the ER? Are you fully vaccinated so that hospital will permit you to be with him? Do you have an oximeter? You will need to monitor him for his oxygen level. If he is 97 or above--he could stay out. Do you have a thermometer? You need to increase fluids and give aspirin (Covid causes clots, and aspirin is helpful against blood clots). You should start treating with high dose vitamin C, zinc, vitamin D, quercetin. He will feel a tiny improvement right away after if he is like me (I had pneumonia 4 times) and my husband. This improvement fades after an hour or so. Then you have to give another dose. Stop when he gets very loose stool. Keep loving him. Is your air humid enough? Some people feel better with inhaling steam (hot steam also, like fever, kills bacteria and viruses). It's not a matter of hospital treatment vs. staying at home without antibiotics, without supplements, without any treatment other than palliative care. Start out by asking your doctor if he can prescribe antibiotics (if that is what you doctor thinks he needs). Ask your doctor how to support his care at home. I am so sorry. https://flccc.net gives protocols for treating Covid at home. The first week you MUST attack the virus with antivirals. Gargle with Listerine. Take at least 100 mg. of zinc in divided doses. Take at least 10,000 IU of vitamin D3. Use nasal spray that has zinc or iodine. After that early week, the virus stops replicating, and you must deal with inflammation. You need curcumin or another anti inflammatory medicine. The final stage is blood clotting. He will need enough aspirin to try to reduce clotting. Hospitals give heparin. The big risk in hospitals is mandated ventilators and Remdesivir. Unfortunately, Remdesivir is ineffective after the first few days because it is an antiviral, and Covid kills during the inflammation or blood clotting stages. Remdesivir kills with kidney damage. Best wishes

Such a hard decision, and I agree with you!
1. You can call his MD and ask for strong antibiotics.
2. There are anti viral Covid medications where he may be able to get an out patient treatment.
3. There are new Covid pills the government is delivering to your door (in NYC).

I was fortunate to have a doctor who tried everything to keep my parents out of the hospital. At one point he prescribed Levoquin at home for my Dad, after an Xray revealed pneumonia. However I was warned that if his breathing became labored I should call 911. Fortunately for us, the antibiotics kicked in and Dad recovered at home. I also had Mom in the hospital twice with dementia and she cried everyday and didn't understand why she was there or why I couldn't visit. So I understand completely your hesitation but you have to use your gut.

Please let us know the outcome!

Take Immediatly to the Hospital.........
My Uncle just had the same thing happen he has Alzheimer's and got Covid and went into pneumonia.
He was in for 3 days, they have a pill they can give him for the Covid and they gave him antibiodics and fluids and then he came home to be taken care of.
If you don't go, at his age he will more than likely die.
My advice is take him, pray for him and get others to pray for him and leave him in Gods hands........
If you don't take him and the worse happens you will feel guilty for the rest of your life.
Get him the help he needs now, don't worry about the IV thing let the Doctors and Nurses take over.

I would still take him. The earlier they get treatment the better. Any kind of lung involvement with an older person can be dangerous. I understand your fear however since there have been a lot of troubling news concerning the way they treat covid patients. Perhaps he won’t need to be hospitalized. Can you just take him to his primary care doc instead of the ER and see if he can get some meds that will help?

Would a telehealth visit work?

I feel for your dilemma, but as a registered nurse you cannot look after an 83 year old with pneumonia at home. He will most likely need some initial IV antibiotics. Pneumonia can be life threatening especially in elders. You need a medical review,

That's challenge. If it were me, I would take my husband to a Functional Medicine/Holistic/Naturopath/Integrative Med doctor (who also does high dose Vit C IV's if possible). Or do what we did from home...contact a doctor who will treat covid with drugs proven to work on covid by phone or online (see below for links) and prescribe what is needed. Nebulized Budesonide works for covid respiratory, based on Oxford Study (link below); hospitals have to have special room for this, and most don't or only have one or two of these rooms. You can get a nebulizer machine and mask and do it at home if you find a doc to prescribe. (https://www.aestheticsadvisor.com/2021/04/dr-richard-bartlett-budesonide-protocol.html)

As you may know, many hospitals are following flawed CDC protocol and putting patients on remdesivir and ventilators; the combo has been deadly. I'm in my late 60's and had covid in October, as did my husband. We agreed we would not take the other to the hospital no matter how bad we got.

We treated our covid infection early, with Ivermectin tablets based on our weight, and Hydrochloroquine. We also took azithromycin antibiotic, 50 mg zinc/day, Vit C to bowel tolerance, 50K IU Vitamin D... for 5 days.
One study: (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8712288/)

On the advice of a pharmacist that I know who works in a hospital, we also took pepcid and zyrtec for inflammation (to prevent cytokine storm). Baby Aspirin for clots. She also recommended "proning" for lungs/breathing (https://mountnittany.org/wellness-article/covid-lying-in-a-prone-position-proning).

For deep chest cough, my husband used 2 little ampoules of liquid Budesonide in an electric nebulizer (like what asthmatics use) with a face mask instead of mouth tube, several times a day. That helped him. I used a nebulizer also, but I used a doctor's protocol of saline, hydrogen pyroxide with a couple drops of lugols iodine, nebulized four times a day (a protocol I've used for sinus infections and respiratory infections for years).

Find a doctor treating covid:
https://americasfrontlinedoctors.org/covid/early-treatment/
https://myfreedoctor.com/

I would call and talk to the emergency room staff and follow their recommendations.

I would call and talk to the emergency room staff and follow their recommenations.