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Synopsis of My Mother’s Abusive Experience
at the Hands of a Guardian and her Case Manager

By: Sharyn Eklund

This abusive experience began in July, 2007. During this guardian’s tenure, she has allowed my mother to be subjected to reckless/negligent behavior which resulted in my mother being admitted to the emergency room/hospital more than seven times.

This guardian failed to remove home health aides who failed to monitor and address symptoms for congestive heart failure.

This guardian failed to remove home health aides who failed to ensure that my mother took her daily medication.

This guardian failed to ensure that her case manager and her aides adhered to strict dietary restrictions essential for a congestive heart failure patient.

This guardian failed to ensure that appropriate foods that would meet the strict dietary restrictions  were purchased and provided to my mother. On October 29, 2009, my sister assumed that responsibility.

This guardian and her case manager devised a “care plan” that traumatized my mother and subjected her to ongoing, acute stress for one and a half months by tearing her out of her home and demanding that she travel between the homes of my sister, brother and cousin. Said homes are not elderly friendly and my mother was put at risk by the need to climb stairs to access a bedroom. My mother was further vicitmized by being placed on a chemical restraint because she wanted to return to her own home. Her dose of seroquel was raised from 50mg/d, which was more than adeqquate when she was in her own home, to 75 mg/d, which was not adequate to overcome the extreme anxiety she was experiencing for the duration of this forced migration.

When my mother was finally allowed to return home, less than adequate attention was paid to crucial dietary and fluid restriction. There has been constant fluctuation in weight and fluid gain with constant fluctuation in medication provided.

My mother was admitted at least four times in the last two weeks (end of Oct-Nov) to the hospital due to less than adequate attention paid to crucial dietary and fluid restrictions and medications/doses administered.

During the period around the last hospital visit, my mother lost 10 pounds of fluid in two weeks, with a total weight loss of about 20 pounds since June. The guardian’s case manager, who has not been diligent in instructing her aides in all particulars of care for my mother, came to my mother’s home to start implementing remedial actions based upon my letter dated 11/7/09 outlining the less than adequate care that my mother has been receiving, and the case manager’s less than responsible oversight and instruction of the aides.

This guardian has been a less than an adequate steward of my mother’s assets. For more than one and one half years she has failed to replace a damaged roof. The water damage increases with each rain storm; and now it is winter again with snow and ice.

The guardian has failed to allow others to render their accountings so, it appears, that she can justify why she does not render her own accounting. She has violated MA SJC Rule 1:07 and paid herself without court approval.

It appears that this guardian has mismanaged more than $400,000 in assets; and yet my mother has been wanting for a full length winter coat and boots for 2 years.

Yet, it appears that this abuse is allowed to continue.