Ebumbu

1 minute ago, donnacha said:

Ignore the haters.

Banking will be no problem. Online banking with his US bank online and in-person banking with his Thai bank.

Someone suggested Chiang Mai. Lovely city but, unfortunately, the atrocious air quality during the first half of the year will hasten his demise.

If he can cope with losing his familiar environment, the quality of his interactions will be far higher in Thailand. Experiences such as massages should improve his overall quality of life. The quality of care in the West is both astonishingly bad and astonishingly expensive. If he has the basic money necessary to enable a full-time carer and activities such as visiting elephant farms, he will have a higher quality of life.

I see that my own father responds well to his mostly foreign carers. I have no doubt that you will find kind, funny carers who will speak sufficient English to communicate well with your father.

One consideration is that, sometimes, people with dementia become more alarmed by foreigners. In my experience, however, female Asians interact well with elderly westerners - for example, many nurses in the West are Filipina and have a terrific attitude, far better than American, European, or Middle-Eastern nurses.

One possible show-stopper is that elderly men can sometimes be very uncomfortable with change, even when it makes perfect sense on paper. Please don't tie yourself in knots trying to improve your father's life if he does not have the mental capacity to deal with it. It doesn't matter if the changes you are suggesting make perfect sense on many levels, you are ultimately dealing with the emotions of a man facing death, and that is rarely graceful.
   




 

Super helpful. I will reread and ponder. Yeah, I post for help, and I get some hate. Maybe I misspelled help. 555. 

9 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

 

Also surprised by level of positive/supportive posts from folk. 

 

You are helping to adjust that ratio. Good work. 

I have no concrete plan. I'm seeking input from those more knowledgeable than me about how this could be done, or whether it's just impossible. I'm brainstorming and will gather as much data as possible before making any moves. Thank you. 

6 minutes ago, mtls2005 said:

 

Hire care-givers to help him at home. Millions of us have been through this process, and yes, there is a process which works.

 

Honestly, you're all over the map.

Care-givers is a great idea. Father objects to it, for now. He says he doesn't need it. He does. 

Can do without negativity. I'm investigating options and responding to comments all over the map. Have a Snickers. 

If you are aware of a process that works, I'd be grateful if you shared it. No decisions have been made yet. 

3 minutes ago, mtls2005 said:

An Assisted Living facility would be the next step.

Yes, I conflated the two. Agree. 

3 minutes ago, mtls2005 said:

No elder-care professional would endorse such a move, based on what little detail you've provided, unless you could guarantee a level of care equal to or greater than that available in the U.S.

The US is killing off its elder population wholesale with Covid. You have a much higher opinion of standard of care in the US than I do. Excellent care in Thailand is available at a fraction of the cost. If he needs to move to an assisted-living facility, the care here is incomparable to the US. He's not Bill Gates. Assisted Living in his state is going to be $50k a year (entry level) and up. What would that buy in Thailand?  

21 minutes ago, Ebumbu said:

Redundant post. Delete. 

Just now, Trujillo said:

Did you ask what he wanted? 

If he's too out of it to really understand, would such a total upending of the few things around him that he gets grounding from upset him? 

I talk with him every few days. I expect discussions to last many months. My purpose here is to gather options and ideas about the practical challenges of such a move. His USA situation is becoming untenable. The next step would be a nursing home in the USA, which would be a very poor quality of life compared to what's available here, along with family (me) to advocate and take care here. 

2 minutes ago, mtls2005 said:

 

Plan, plan, plan.

 

Your posts are kind of, free-form, and lack a bit of basic common sense, to be brutally honest.

 

 

I am playing the hand I have been dealt. I have not covered every minute detail in my posts. What I'm doing here is brainstorming, and I've already gotten a lot of useful and actionable info. Thank you. 

8 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

Weird post from someone living in Thailand.

I haven't left during Covid. I feel much safer here than in the USA, where the virus is out of control. I think that by the time I work out details of my father's move, quarantine will be over. I am very weird. You are correct. 

3 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

What is your status here? If on a extension based upon retirement and some others your father could get an extension for being your father. No need for money in the bank or health insurance to get a single entry non-o visa and apply for the extension.

I have retirement extensions. However, father has substantial savings whereas I do not. He'd be in a better position floating his own visa, I believe. 

Also, it's possible I may switch to a business visa. I want to keep that option open. 

My father also asked what happens if I predecease him. Good question. Anything can happen. I need to ponder that one. Best answer I can come up with is to introduce him to a legal firm and the embassy. 

Thanks.

8 hours ago, BritTim said:

If he will have live in support, there is no reason why he cannot visit a local bank branch rather than trying to learn online banking. He will almost certainly find the staff at the bank very patient and friendly with someone of his age. The attitude of Thais towards the elderly is one of the reasons why I think it is suitable for retirees as they decline physically and mentally.

Agree. I find Thai banks superior to US banks, and more technologically advanced. 

Do you know which US banks have a big presence here in Thailand? His primary bank is Citibank, and that only has 6 branches in Bangkok.

He demands access to his US banks as a condition of any move. Reasonable. So, options are online banking or finding US banks with a big presence here. My thinking is to buy him a laptop and encrypt it. Securely back up passwords on my own encrypted laptop. Get RSA devices maybe. Get a local US mobile number before he leaves. Lots of issues. Suggestions are welcome. 

8 hours ago, BritTim said:

AHQ package rather than ASQ. Regular ASQ is not really suitable for someone with dementia.

Hi. I'm wasn't familiar with these terms. Thanks for encouragement. It looks like supervised quarantine in a hospital. If I leave Thailand and come back, am I required to do 14 day quarantine, even if vaccinated? Could I do it at my own house? Could my father do this quarantine in my house? 

10 minutes ago, mr mr said:

bring the old fella over for a holiday of a lifetime. but moving your ailing father over in the condition you mention. a world of hassle awaits. 

 

with a father that age you can't be no spring chicken either. how's your health ? ????

 

 

I'm fine. Thank you for asking. Care to share specific issues? The napkin-sketch plan is to rent a big house with two floors for a landing place. Then, hire help (live in assistant) or look for a community that he likes and that has nursing staff, activities, etc. 

Just now, Upnotover said:

That may well be the case but he would still need health insurance in order to get an OA visa, check the embassy website for the details.

He has medicare. Is this enough? I rather doubt private insurance is going to cover Thailand, as a previous poster said. Can try. Maybe travel insurance for starters? I am at the beginning of my journey now, so getting TV experts opinions. 

3 minutes ago, onebir said:

It seems like the health insurance options get very limited over age 75?

He can pay out of pocket as needed. Has savings. 

If you can find a good, focused, talented blind Thai massage person, they can bring great relief. Should be part of your weekly routine. 1.5 hours a week can really help, and it's one of the great benefits of this place. Very inexpensive. 

I got an extension based on income (65k baht or more international transfer every month) last October. Easy as pie. 

1 hour ago, BadSpottedDog said:

And what happens to people like my daughter, that have serious adverse reactions to vaccines? She cannot have them, but she's lived in Thailand for 5 years now. She has nothing left in our home country, her home is here.
Do they even realize there are a lot of people with this problem?

It's an MNRA vaccine, which is new tech. It doesn't work like previous vaccines. It's not the hair of the dog that bit you. 

In the photo, after the arrest, many are still half-assing their mask, or wearing none at all. Reminds me of USA. 

He may be smarter than you think. On the basis of this, whether or not it was an authentic offer, he received assistance and job offers. 

They are worried about a few reported cases of the Borracho Virus. Need to nip it in the bud this time.