Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Do really not understand that the things you mention are not confined to one region?
If I had only one parent alive and they moved to rural NY where they have no family other than in NYC and Rodchester,do you not think they also would have problems?The difference between you and me is I have NEVER hated not one area I have been.I have lived all over the world and the U.S.
Every place others hated I made the best of it and found what was unique with that area.Of course some I liked better than pthers but those experiences ha ve made me more well rounded and able to understand different points of view.
This is exactly why I will not be moving back to my hometown when I retire next year. The reality is that it's not really a good place for an elderly person to live, even if you are in relatively good health and can drive.
The hospital closed in 2009 because of a devastating flood. There is only 1 part-time medical practice in town. I'm not sure if there are any dentists or eye doctors left. There's no veterinarian. Shopping consists of a small independent supermarket, a dollar store, a Valu, an independent version of Tractor Supply, a NAPA Auto Parts, a Rite-Aid, and a handful of other specialized shops. There's no taxi service much less bus service. Local entertainment is limited to a couple of bars and events at the volunteer fire department, the Moose or the American Legion. The town is about 20-25 miles in any direction to additional medical services, shopping, and entertainment, and it's located in the heart of the lake effect snow belt off Lake Erie.
My revised retirement plan is to improve my camp (ie, have indoor plumbing) so that I can stay overnight sometimes in the summer rather than build a house on my land (I live about 35 miles away).
Over a span of more than 20 years, I lived in two mid-Hudson counties (on each side of the river). Local public transportation was non-existent in one, and scant in the other.
Neither had good healthcare resources whatsoever, and the ultimate solution in hospital care was shipping seriously ill patients off to Westchester.
When my elderly mother who had moved to be near to us became unable to live independly, I was forced to place her in care in her original home state for attentive medical care, senior transportation, and affordable assisted living alternatives. It was only there that she received the proper professional care. I truly believe that her time in NYS shortened her life because of substandard medical services, and it still pains me to this day that I wasn't able to have her living near us before she left this world.
Over a span of more than 20 years, I lived in two mid-Hudson counties (on each side of the river). Local public transportation was non-existent in one, and scant in the other.
Neither had good healthcare resources whatsoever, and the ultimate solution in hospital care was shipping seriously ill patients off to Westchester.
When my elderly mother who had moved to be near to us became unable to live independly, I was forced to place her in care in her original home state for attentive medical care, senior transportation, and affordable assisted living alternatives. It was only there that she received the proper professional care. I truly believe that her time in NYS shortened her life because of substandard medical services, and it still pains me to this day that I wasn't able to have her living near us before she left this world.
I am deeply sadden by your loss and I hope you are able to find peace.It is a shame that anywere in rural America its the same reality.Services are just bad.
Anyone pretending that its worlds apart in these rural areas are just not aware of reality.
Thank you, afonega1. I appreciate your words.
We were only a little more than one hour outside of NYC, and yet we were in the backwoods as far as good medical care and services,
espcially for the elderly.
Over a span of more than 20 years, I lived in two mid-Hudson counties (on each side of the river). Local public transportation was non-existent in one, and scant in the other.
Neither had good healthcare resources whatsoever, and the ultimate solution in hospital care was shipping seriously ill patients off to Westchester.
When my elderly mother who had moved to be near to us became unable to live independly, I was forced to place her in care in her original home state for attentive medical care, senior transportation, and affordable assisted living alternatives. It was only there that she received the proper professional care. I truly believe that her time in NYS shortened her life because of substandard medical services, and it still pains me to this day that I wasn't able to have her living near us before she left this world.
I am currently dealing with the same issue.
My dad is very old and not in good health. He lives in Florida where the system is excellent maybe more so for seniors. As driving is getting to be an issue he's lucky to be able to live in an area thats safe and well served by buses and cabs.
But..............with me in NY it would be easier to help him if he was here. Here being Upstate. Its very sprawled out here with some of the services he needs in Utica/Syracuse and others in Rochester. Of coarse he would never live in any of those cities nor would I allow him to anyway. Which means a car. Or us driving him.
I really can't find a way to make NY work for him. Of coarse the ideal would be for us to move there and that is the plan but I need more time to retire.
Looking back I think staying in NY is gonna have been the wrong thing to do.
I am deeply sadden by your loss and I hope you are able to find peace.It is a shame that anywere in rural America its the same reality.Services are just bad.
Anyone pretending that its worlds apart in these rural areas are just not aware of reality.
Absolutely! If you're elderly and live in a rural area, you are utterly dependent upon your children, or more likely, because your kids have moved away for better job prospects, upon your neighbors. That is true North, South, East, West. Everywhere.
The same is also true for poverty in rural areas. It's much harsher in rural areas than in urban areas because services and opportunities are so lacking. If you're too poor to have a car in rural America, you have virtually no hope of ever improving your situation.
Absolutely! If you're elderly and live in a rural area, you are utterly dependent upon your children, or more likely, because your kids have moved away for better job prospects, upon your neighbors. That is true North, South, East, West. Everywhere.
The same is also true for poverty in rural areas. It's much harsher in rural areas than in urban areas because services and opportunities are so lacking. If you're too poor to have a car in rural America, you have virtually no hope of ever improving your situation.
Which is exactly the case with my father's hometown in Mississippi, which also has a 66% poverty rate and is in one of the poorest counties in the country. I've posted this video before, but it gives you an idea of how poor some of these rural areas can be, especially in a region like the Mississippi Delta. It isn't just the rates, but the relative isolation and the lack of infrastructure. I'm planning on going back down there with my dad this summer, hopefully, to see how things are now. It looks a little bit better from what I've seen online, but there are many things that can/need to be improved upon. http://youtu.be/Zlc_92Tq1VE
My dad is very old and not in good health. He lives in Florida where the system is excellent maybe more so for seniors. As driving is getting to be an issue he's lucky to be able to live in an area thats safe and well served by buses and cabs.
But..............with me in NY it would be easier to help him if he was here. Here being Upstate. Its very sprawled out here with some of the services he needs in Utica/Syracuse and others in Rochester. Of coarse he would never live in any of those cities nor would I allow him to anyway. Which means a car. Or us driving him.
I really can't find a way to make NY work for him. Of coarse the ideal would be for us to move there and that is the plan but I need more time to retire.
Looking back I think staying in NY is gonna have been the wrong thing to do.
I put his place for sale but prolly won't be much movement until this Fall so I have some time.
The big thing is transport. Where he is now within a 5 mnutr walk he has several grocery stores, a couple drug stores, a tool store and afew other places. And a bus system that runs exactly on time for appointments. And a network of friends for driving.
Up here there is nothing like that. Most of the healthcare is packed into giant centers which you can't really walk to from anywhere. My understanding is the bus system is horrible.
We have been working on this for sometime. There is no easy or good solution. It's kinda pick the one that sucks least.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
