Rural vs City Caregiver (parent, spouse, father, senior)

[linicx]

The process is the same regardless of where one lives. The difference is in the services and where they are located. There is always a trade off.

I live 50 miles from nine major hospitals and big city life, 40 miles from a midsize town, 15 miles from the nearest farm town, that has less services the we do, but only six blocks from the services I need. My little town, in the middle of nowhere, has a 25 bed hospital, one nursing home, one EMT, one pharmacy, and one grocery store. Home medical equipment suppliers, Hospice, Caregiver support, Respite, elderly Day Care, and elderly transport is not here or even near here; it's 50-90 miles from where I live. .

There were times when my spouse was sick I wished I could shop elsewhere, and times when I seriously considered hospice, but neither was realistic when all things, such as a 17" snowfall that paralyzes traffic statewide, is taken into consideration. I was grateful I did not live in the county where neighbors are five miles apart. It was a very deliberate decision to move here based on previous experience with the medical community. For six years we were wrapped in a kind, caring, helpful and very skilled medical community. It was wonderful while it lasted. Unfortunately the nearest support of any kind for the surviving caregiver os also 50-90 miles.

The flip side is cities of 100,000 or over offer all the services for all levels of support. It is a better life for the caregiver, plus more than a few services are low-cost or free to senior patients.

[Saritaschihuahua]

Cities are indeed much better for caregivers. There's so much available. That's why I hate the suburban lifestyle that is so predominant in the U.S. It's pure isolation.

Originally Posted by linicx

The process is the same regardless of where one lives. The difference is in the services and where they are located. There is always a trade off.

I live 50 miles from nine major hospitals and big city life, 40 miles from a midsize town, 15 miles from the nearest farm town, that has less services the we do, but only six blocks from the services I need. My little town, in the middle of nowhere, has a 25 bed hospital, one nursing home, one EMT, one pharmacy, and one grocery store. Home medical equipment suppliers, Hospice, Caregiver support, Respite, elderly Day Care, and elderly transport is not here or even near here; it's 50-90 miles from where I live. .

There were times when my spouse was sick I wished I could shop elsewhere, and times when I seriously considered hospice, but neither was realistic when all things, such as a 17" snowfall that paralyzes traffic statewide, is taken into consideration. I was grateful I did not live in the county where neighbors are five miles apart. It was a very deliberate decision to move here based on previous experience with the medical community. For six years we were wrapped in a kind, caring, helpful and very skilled medical community. It was wonderful while it lasted. Unfortunately the nearest support of any kind for the surviving caregiver os also 50-90 miles.

The flip side is cities of 100,000 or over offer all the services for all levels of support. It is a better life for the caregiver, plus more than a few services are low-cost or free to senior patients.

[linicx]

Where I live suburban isn't rural and it may be an annoying 30 minute drive through traffic to get there. It has close access to what you need and the town is not 200 and dying. A rural county seat will generally have far more services than any other city in the state. Chicago for instance is the County Seat of Cook County. It is also the largest city in the state and the Midwest, . Lewistown is the County Seat of Fulton County, but Canton is 30 times larger and it is not even close to 50,000 pop. .

Rural is isolated by distance and by lack of big city services.

Originally Posted by Saritaschihuahua

Cities are indeed much better for caregivers. There's so much available. That's why I hate the suburban lifestyle that is so predominant in the U.S. It's pure isolation.

[_redbird_]

We are rural, but we live outside the county seat. I like being rural because our dentist, pharmacist, plumber, and doctor are all from around here. There is a big difference in how business is conducted here vs a large metro. It makes things easier for us and others who are caregivers.

[linicx]

It truly does differ from state to state. Where I live the nearest caregiver group licensed by the state is 50 miles in any direction. We have the pharmacy and all local services. What we don't have is caregiver ssupport or a national home health equipment nearby. The local one would have killed my spouse because of an ignorant nurse - which is another subject.

[yellowsnow]

When I cared for my parents, it was in rural Minnesota. There were no services available at all. I also tried to limit my trips into Minneapolis because I already commuted there for work every day. I tried to do all their docs/therapies, etc, locally or in St Cloud. For the most part it worked out OK, the only place I had to take them in MSP was to the neurologist and that was just an occasional visit.

My father had dementia and living in a rural setting gave him more freedom. He could go outside and 'do' things in the yard and walk the dog. He couldn't have had that same freedom in the city. We lived in a beautiful area and had a river in the back yard. Tons of birds and animals. My father shoveled paths and fed the swans/geese/ducks cracked corn all winter long.

It's always a trade-off.