How can I get my mother to take a shower and/or wash her hair?

All states have some sort of Medicaid program in addition to medicare. Contact your local Medicaid office to get information. I am in Oregon and it is all run through the Dept of Social Services here. Good luck.

Thanks, I'll look into that. I'm in New York, and haven't heard of such a program, but maybe there is one here. I'll check.

Yes, I am paid $1258 per month by senior services. It was $1500 before the bath thing came up. Contact Senior Services, they do a background check and I am licensed by the state as a relative foster caregiver.

Thanks for your response. I'll try your methods. You mentioned you get paid by social services. How is that possible? I didn't know caregiver's relatives could be paid.

I have the same problem with my 92 yr old mom. She hates baths and washing her hair. In fact, social services cut my pay by $200 because I only give her a shower once every two weeks. The only way I can get her in there is to turn the heater on, warm up her clothes and towels in the clothes dryer and wash her as quick as possible. They usually don't like it because they get so cold. I promise mom a small bite of Hershey candy when she's done and a warm cup of cocoa afterward. I usually give her a bath just before she goes to bed that way her heating blanket is on and warm, and I wash her hair in the afternoons and I bought a bonnet type hair dryer so she stays warm.