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I am in Arizona. Tomorrow, my Mom is having her second neuro psych eval. The psychologist called me on Friday and indicated, that since she did the last eval, she is thinking this one will have Mom declared incompetent and asked me to fax in all the POA paperwork in case she would need them. She indicated she would work closely with Mom to get her to understand and agree to a plan, but if she didn't, it would help to have all the paperwork in her possession. I am now starting to wonder if this means Mom could be sent for a 72 hour eval or just what are the possibilities of what could happen? I am not in the same town. Her caregiver is taking her to the evaluation appointment. Has anyone else been through this already?

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I'm a little confused too. Are the asking the court to declare you mom incompetent? Why is the psychologist doing this? It doesn't sound like it's her job. Has your mom signed a Durable POA? If not, the regular POA may not survive your mom's incompetence. And if you mom is found incompetent, she is likely also not competent to agree to a plan.

I hope more people have experience with this and can give you some suggestions.

Unless your mom is in danger to herself or others, I'm not sure why they would want a 72 hold.
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Your post is a little confusing. You have POA, are out of town, doc thinks she's now incompetent so now what happens? You have to come in and take over her affairs? Where does mom live? Is she ready to be in a facility?
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I am sorry! I rarely ask questions in here....so not familiar with the process. So to be more clear....My Mom is diagnosed with early Alzheimer's as of two years ago. She's been home alone until this past March, and now with care givers 6 hours/day. But myself and family have noticed more of a decline and I've worked with her PCP to get an order to have her re evaluated. I do have the POA but thus far, she has not been declared incompetent, so I do all the financial things and coordinate medical stuff. I live 5 hrs away and my daughter who lives in Phx and I go down to Tucson about 2 times a months to check on things. My Dad is already placed in memory care for dementia. We have been trying to work with Mom for at least 6 months now...with her elder care attorney also involved...trying to get Mom to consider the future and what she wants to do...assisted living or move with family. We have an RN daughter and her family up in WA state who have offered to take in both their grandparents together for the rest of their lives. Mom won't made any decisions, just says she wants things to be the way they used to be and she wants to live in her house forever and she wants to be surrounded by family and NEVER wants to be in assisted living or a place like my Dad is in. So rather impossible. WE have pushed for the second neuro psych eval that is being done tomorrow. I sent some written info to the Psychologist because I cannot be there...giving a synopsis of the changes that we, in her family, and her caregivers see. The doctor called me on Friday afternoon and told me that I should fax in the POA paperwork and sign some other release forms for insurance and giving permission to discuss outcomes with others in the family and her doctor...forms like that. And she said she needed those because, since she had done the first eval, and was on the verge of saying Mom was incompetent then, she felt pretty confident that this eval was going to end up with that diagnosis, so she wanted to be prepared fully. She said she would seriously try to lead my Mom to understanding how things were in the summary session, but felt she might not have Mom's cooperation or understanding. So after explaining this conversation to my daughters, they are both thinking that IF Mom is declared incompetent, then she may have to be somehow placed immediately tomorrow...or placed on a 72 hour hold for more evaluation/meds etc, while we look for placement. Or that perhaps another scenario would be saying she could come home but only with 24/7 supervision/caregivers. So that is more detail about the reason for me asking if others had been through this type of situation. Just trying to figure out if these options ARE what might happen....because I am sitting here 5 hours away, and I cannot go there. I also have a husband at home with Parkinson's Disease and run a home business and am 71 yrs old with some of my own health issues. The only family that can take Mom in, is the Washington family and they are in the middle of selling one home and buying another...going through a move. Plus there is the complications of not wanting to separate my parents so they never see each other again. Having my Mom visit is about the only thing my Dad clearly remembers and looks forward to every day. SO....all this explains better how my question has come about...
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I think the best course of action would be to call up the psychologist and ask HER what the next step is if she finds your mother to be incompetent. Does she need 24/7 coverage immediately after that determination is made? Should she be sent somewhere "inhouse" for an evaluation of meds, etc?
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It's seem that all these evaluations are just going to confirm the obvious, that your mothers mental condition is not good and she should be in a care facility. Given the info about yourself and your family that seems like the obvious solution.

You have apparently gone through this with dad so you know how it works. Can the facility where dad is accommodate mom also? Your mom says she doesn't want anything to change, wants to stay at home etc, and that is what we all want but we know its not possible in most cases. Given the logistics and issues in your family mom and your family will be better served if she is in care.
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Better to persuade a person than to get the courts involved. You decide for your Mom, because after all the "incompetence" legal, you will be deciding, right? I personally would be calling the Patient's Rights Advocate, if I were competent to do that.
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