Should we move my mother to a nursing home in France...???

[Angela T]

Thank you MeganCat, from all the replies I see the importance of "sooner rather than later" - in fact I had thought the opposite, I had assumed I should wait till my mother can't speak much and then it makes little difference where she is.

But I see that she will benefit from being close to us now, in a way she won't so much as the illness progresses.

I spoke to her yesterday - she is very keen to come to France, and she understood my French, and replied very easily (in French).

I visited a NH nearby on Saturday and I am going back tomorrow to talk to the Manager and see what she, and the medical team, think about the idea.

It is a bit of a challenge, but then this whole thing is a challenge and there is NO easy solution...

 

[Angela T]

THANK YOU to all of you for your postive comments and encouragement.

When I first had this idea - moving my mother to a NH in France, I thought it was a bit crazy - but the idea wouldn't go away.

Your advice and "sooner rather than later" got me going, so my husband and I visited a highly recommended local NH (opened last year) on Saturday, and I saw the manager today.

She is very open and thinks it the best solution for my mother - she also thinks the language is not a problem, most of the staff (who are French) speak some English, a couple of the residents speak English... and she thinks my mother will have enough French for everyday chit-chat and the daily activities.

She said we can bring in a volunteer to speak English with my mother, if necessary...

Since the NH opened recently, the waiting list is short - so my mother should be able to move in fairly soon - she just now needs to get her mobility back a little...

THANKS again, this forum really is so helpful !
Angela

 

[Angela T]

Thanks, I have no illusions - it won't be an ideal solution. It's going to be tricky - when and how to move my mother etc, she cannot walk at the moment...

And if she does come to France, there will be other difficulties - But on balance, she will be closer to her family, and that must count for her now.

I'm not looking too far ahead, no point...

It's one step at a time - as we all know !