My husband wants to be evaluated to prove he can still drive! What if he passes? There will be more confrontation. I can’t let him drive any longer. Dr said he would order if we wanted it. I hate to say no to my DH. He thinks it’s going to prove he can drive. Any thoughts on this ?
But it was somewhat easier as she didnt have her car with her in town with me. It simply is being " taken care of" by my sister.
She still thinks she can drive but as she is now in memory care I dont have to worry about it anymore. Her car has been given to her soon to be 16 year kld grandson, which is what she said ahe would do if she couldnt drive pre dementia.
Try the free trial test online before forking out big bucks.
Wish you well.
You can report him to your state motor vehicle department, medical office. They will review his medical records to see if he has any conditions or diagnoses that could impair his driving ability. They will then require him to be evaluated or surrender his license.
Veterans can usually get this evaluation for free at a local VA hospital.
The testing involves completing forms (don't help him), a cognitive test, tests for speed of reflexes, and on-the-road testing in their car, not his.
Do not involve his MD unless you are sure he thinks DH can't drive or there are medical records with a cognitive diagnosis. Do talk to his eye doctor to be certain he has the acuity, peripheral vision and depth perception to be a safe driver. If these have not been tested find another eye doctor.
Bottom line: don't worry about DH passing. I have never seen a patient pass who didn't really have the skills to drive safely. The people doing the testing are professional OTs or PTs who understand what is required to be a safe driver.
PLEASE WRITE THE INITIALS OUT INTO FULL WORDS. Some of us have no idea what these initials mean and it is infuriating.
I'll bet the folks evaluating him see this kind of thing all the time. If someone is asking to be evaluated to prove they're capable of driving, then that's a pretty big red flag that they aren't.
Because of my father's passive/aggressive behavior mom wouldn't confront dad about driving. For months I'd ask dad not to drive. Please stop driving. FINALLY he agreed but before I got the car disposed of ... yup he drove. We were talking of parking it far away in the lower parking lot of the facility but got it donated and it finally got towed off.
Of course this wasn't the end of it. For the next couple years he'd bring up he was perfectly capable of driving. He made the mistake of complaining to his DR and she replied with 6 words: "Richard, we talked about your driving."
For some elders if is very hard to give up driving - it's one more loss; loss of independence.
Good luck.
Took a while, with COVID creating staffing issues, but finally suspended Feb 26 👌 She’s still trying to find a doc who will “help her” to get back to driving.
See All Answers