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Andrea's Complicated Role: As the person responsible for co-ordinating Nardys care, Andrea describes how it was necessary to show great sensitivity to the various degrees of acceptance and resolve that each family member had.
Arranging for Care: Arranging for outside care was a tremendous help for Waynes mother. Ensuring that the care respected his fathers dignity was of critical importance.
How the Family Coped with Care: Waynes family coped very well with the dislocation and challenges of providing care. This is due in no small measure to Andreas involvement “ an involvement which she describes as the most difficult case of her career.
How They Guided their Children: Andrea feels that her kids have a better understanding of dealing with difficult challenges because of the guided experience they had in helping care for their grandfather.
Living in the Moment: In this fascinating segment, Wayne and Andrea describe two different, but complementary, approaches to the progression of the disease “ one living in the moment and the other planning ahead.
Looking Back: There are many different ways to help with someone who is on the journey. The most important learning was ensuring that the patient can maintain their dignity and their individuality by helping them be in control of their journey as much as possible.
The Benefits of Having Professional Support: Wayne considers that he and his family were very fortunate in having professional help (Andrea) to turn to a crisis situation where they had no background.
The Support of Friends and Family: The support of friends and family was very effective because everyone helped out in areas where they were strongest, with minimal overlap in responsibility. This extended to the over 40 resources (who werent friends or family) that Andrea was able to co-ordinate.
The Diagnosis: Wayne and Andrea describe the plethora of feelings and emotions in the early days surrounding the ALS diagnosis. The remembrance of these emotions has stayed with them and has impacted how they approach their clients who are in similar situations.