Woman takes ‘passport’ out of nursing home
Written by Autumn Lee | | news@toledofreepress.comIt’s not even Christmas, and Patricia Oren has already received several “blessings.”
The Gibsonburg resident was able to cut an expected yearlong stay at a nursing home down by two months thanks to the Passport Program offered through the Area Office on Aging of Northwestern Ohio (AOoA). And it was just in time for Oren to be home with her family during the holidays.
“I’m having blessings I’d never envisioned,” Oren said.
Patricia Oren
Oren, a retired teacher, said she put herself in Windsor Lane Healthcare because of lymphedema and to get her weight down. The treatment that she received allowed her to lose nearly 60 pounds.
Oren, 68, started having trouble with her lymphatic system after a serious car accident in 1968 where she was ejected from a vehicle and went into a ditch. She nearly lost her left leg, which had to be reattached and was later told she was dead for more than six minutes.
When she went on Medicaid, Oren said she was encouraged to check out Passport. The program is part of a statewide initiative designed to provide homebound senior citizens with options for their long-term care. It is operated by the Ohio Department of Aging and the AOoA. Funding comes from Medicaid.
Passport is a beautiful program, Oren said.
“It’s been awesome,” she said.
Passport provides her with meals that are delivered to her home, health care supplies and an aide who helps her dress and bathe herself. She also receives occupational and physical therapy.
Oren said having that assistance is a big help.
That is not the only “big help” Oren has received. The Helping Ohioans Move, Expanding Choice program — also known as HOME Choice — helped her transition from the nursing home back into the community, Oren said. Through the program, she received a bed and other household items in addition to her first month’s rent for her new apartment.
Oren said it helped her get her initial start.
“I’m hopefully on the way to get back to society and be a contributing member again,” she said. “I’m getting the care I need as I go along.”
Oren said she is ready to get out there so she can do things on her own. In the meantime, she is helping others. Oren said she recently helped another person obtain a GED. That brings Oren’s total to 187.
Since leaving the nursing home, she went to her nephew’s for Thanksgiving where 29 people gathered, and she is preparing to spend Christmas at home. Her daughter will travel from Virginia to visit, and her son will travel from McComb.
“I’m in a home where my family can come share it with me,” she said. “This would be impossible in a nursing home.”
Oren said being home is the greatest blessing she’s ever had.
“All of it is blessings,” she said. “I’ll never take any of it for granted.”
Hi, Pat, it’s great to hear from you.
I’m glad you have found a place you like and it sounds like it is very nice. I wish you well.
Your e/m was very pleasant to read and it was good to hear you are progressing with happiness. You always had a positive attitude, that helps a lot, It sound like you still have it and more.
There isn’t any thing new happening around here, just the same old stuff, you know. The part time help changes a lot and there are part timers that spend the night..and you know that made the rent go up, it gets higher each year.
Before I close, Bea moved to Mass to be near her daughter, she kind of had a mental problem that got worse as time went on,, was in and out of the hospital and there was nothing wrong with her, she had not eaten much for a long time and kept on until there wasn’t any more left. It was always jello, lettuce, and Pepsy with ice cream.
Martha rented a real nice place for her but unfortunatly she didn’t have the chance to be there very long.She fell getting out of bed and broke a leg and some other bones and passed on shortly after that. Even Martha said she didn’t want to live.. Nead I say, I miss her?
Today was the family Christmas party,
quite a few that brought their families and it was a nice gathering.
This was typed in a hurry so please forgive if the verbs and nouns aren’t right, spelling, too.
Keep up the good work,
As ever, Marge P.S. nice picture!
This comment was posted on December 13th, 2009 at 10:18 pmIt says part can’t be sent…………….