What do you do when a dementia patient will no longer go to the doctor?

Is this your husband's primary physician? While I doubt that the MD will make house calls, you may be able to find a mobile physician service that can provide primary care visits in the home. In WNY, we have a service called Mobile Primary; usually they send Nurse Practitioner's out for the home visits, but the services seem pretty consistent and the program is overseen by MD's.

We also have a home blood draw service through Quest Diagnostics out here; I'm sure there's something like that in your neck of the woods. Also home health agencies have the ability to send nurses to do blood draws. You may want to look at that option as well.

I do think its unrealistic and a little unfair for your hubby's MD to expect him to make app'ts every three months given his condition. As long as he's medically stable otherwise, I don't see what the issue would be if was seen once or twice a year instead. It obviously causes a lot of distress for your husband and neither he nor you need that!

Went to the docs today for MY appointment. Mentioned about having to cancel my husbands last one. He would NOT get dressed, not agree to go, nothing. I asked her today about maybe a visiting nurse or something, someone who could report back to her. She SAID there is nothing, no service like that. He MUST come in and see her. She said if I got him on a good day , just bring him in without an appointment and she would see him. Ya, right. I sat for over an hour today for MY appointment...he sure won't do that. Now what?

I hear you. About the only thing that has helped with my stubborn mother (no dementia that we know of), is to call an ambulance every time that she falls and hope that she is admitted to the hospital. She is in need of health care and won't see a doctor.

In all seriousness....she said she will not give him his meds if he doesn't come in. I am thinking, ok, no more meds. Thats the way it goes. Blood pressure is so low now, I sometimes don't give it to him. And thyroid meds...she just started him on that within the past year, at age 74. Thats the way it goes. I cannot make an adult get dressed and go to the doctors. Yes, if it take an ambulance to take a person to the hospital to see a doc, so be it.

It is true that doctors cannot prescribe for people who they don't see. One doctor told us they had to see a patient at least once a year before they could prescribe for them. It's the law. My father had the same problem as yours. He did not want to go to the doctor. When we made him go, it was just terrible. I don't even like to remember those trips. I wish we still lived in a time where neighborhood doctors made house calls. There are some services available, but they can be challenging to locate. My father's suffering would have been a lot less if he would have just seen the doctor occasionally. He had leg pain that was caused by circulatory problems. So even though he could not be cured, he could have received better palliative care. I hope you are able to get him up and out of the house.

Do you think your father might qualify for hospice?