83 year old senior on coumadin is not being taken for blood test. What can we do?

Sorry to hear of the difficult situation.
that is good that she is willing. I think
Another poster mentioned a taxi
Or something. Anymore many communities
have some sort of senior transport available
For a dollar or two for each direction.
depending....maybe talking with clinic
Things might be changed around...when
She goes to clinic do labs first....and then
Dr can review and make recommendations
All in one trip if possible.
As for papa's attitude...that's a hard one.
Something in his past triggered something.
I would guess he is in fairly good shape
Or maybe he feels she is 83, so just
Leave her alone, or he has had some
Bad dealings with doctors.
another possible idea is to have them
Go to the clinic together and meet with
The Dr or nurse, that will explain what
Is wrong, why its important/complications
And the plan of treatment, and how the
Treatment helps.....it could be an education
Problem...once he sees why and how he
Might change, learning the importance...or
Lastly, and hopefully not, he is just stubborn or
Bullheaded.

I wish you luck

she is compliant , if she is told by him or us , she will go, being unable to drive let alone drive, she is 100% dependent on him, however he does not believe in doctors and not because of religion, he refuses her doctors advise and does not let her talk to him, he just tells the doctor "she doesn't need that" her file is marked non-compliant, no choice to get an agency involved

Hello. I would talk to the Dr directly
and explain the situation.
Yes, there are professional grade inr
Meters. In some limited cases Medicare
Will pay for.
if you buy yourself..meter is approximately
$1000, but strips about $1 to $2 each.
You may need an rx for it.
That might be an option....look around
internet...quick medical or cila waived.
Talk to the Dr for options.

Good luck

The best thing would be to have a nurse coming to the home. If he lets you take her to the dr why would he object to in home visits? Is it because of the condition of the home? If yes, then if there a nearby friend or neighbor where the visits could take place? If he won't accept a nurse, perhaps you could look into mobile phlebotomy services. These are blood, urine techs who come to your home (medicare covers for some patients, call them) and draw the blood. This is and in and out service. They don"t linger, they don't ask questions, they are just techs. so maybe he won't object to that. Call a local nursing home to get the name of companies that come to them to draw blood b/c they probably will also come to private homes also. I don't know what state your mother is in but Apex is in New York and Florida. do a search for your state and mobile blood or mobile phlebotomy services.

And by the way, does she have any say in her own medical care? Because it doesn't seem she is non compliant but he is and he is not the patient. If that won't work, ask the doctor is she is a candidate for a different type of blood thinners. They have some new medications now where blood checks are not necessary. But the doctor would have to decide based on her situation. From what I understand, if the blood is not monitored property, then there also could be risk of bleeding or failure for it to work properly, as you probably already know. Do they live in a private house? Can they meet on a porch or patio? If an apt, is there a community room? Would the intervention of a social service worker cause more problemls or convince him to cooperate more? What about senior transportation and hiring an aide if necessary to go with her?

You need to find a way to get the test done. That INR is extremely important to keep an eye on. My mother was in the nursing home, being checked every two weeks, and yet she developed bleeding and had to be admitted to the hospital. I urge you to handle this ASAP. You might have to get some kind of intervention from an agency, which allows the test to be done in spite of the husband's refusal. And what kind of condition is he in? He may not be mentally able to realize the importance of this, or he may be thinking it is not that important. Realize as well that people tire of having to go to the doctor's office continually for tests and such. You should be able to have some kind of home health intervention come do the tests for you. I am not for sure, but I think there might be a home kit to check the level, although this would be less reliable and perhaps risky.

Wow, I really feel sorry for you and for your mother.

Could you manage to supervise monthly blood checks once a month? Remind Mom of the appointment the day before, arrange a cab ride both ways, call her and tell her when the cab will be there, call her later and make sure she got home safely?

Her husband is making a fairly simple monthly task far more complicated than it has to be, but I doubt there is anything you can do to change that. The best you can hope for is to work around him in your mother's best interest.

we live 3 hrs away, a few times we were able to get her in, on a friday afternoon, the doctor wonders why we can't bring her in monthly, " her husband does not listen to me" she gets tested once or twice a year, husband does not belief in doctors, for non religious reasons, her file reads non compliant, he does not want people in his home, even the physical therapist we set her up with, thanks

Can someone else take her? It is really important that she have that test, as you know. Is it possible to have a visiting nurse for this service? A nurse comes and takes my mother's blood for the INR. The numbers have been pretty stable for a while so now the nurse will be coming monthly instead of more often.