Long-term Care Nurse Details Her Father’s Dementia Journey and $7,700 Monthly Costs
Tasha Crouse, a Wisconsin-based long-term-care nurse, describes caring for her father with advanced dementia in a Colorado memory-care facility that costs about $7,700 each month.
After her mother passed in 2015, Tasha Crouse noticed her father’s memory lapses and escalating safety issues, leading her to seek a conservatorship and professional caregiving. Initial attempts to hire help were hampered by his refusal to pay and Medicaid ineligibility, prompting her to engage Home Instead for limited in-home support at a cost of $4,100. A seizure in April forced hospitalization and a recommendation for rehab, after which she placed him in a Colorado memory-care facility costing about $7,700 a month.
Crouse travels monthly from Wisconsin, incurring $6,000 in travel expenses, and has obtained court approval to reimburse herself for caregiving and travel costs. Managing his finances has been challenging, with banks often skeptical despite legal documents, and his remaining savings and house may soon be liquidated. The ordeal has also led her to plan for her own future long-term-care needs and establish advance directives for her family.
Why it matters
The piece highlights the financial and bureaucratic hurdles families face when securing dementia care in the U.S.
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