Exhausted

I am wiped out. Last week of summer, I'm not even home. And I'm exhausted. I am doing another LEAN workshop at Children's Hospital this week, M-F from 8-4:30. It is mentally exhausting. We are working to improve the process of transferring a patient from the Emergency Department to a hospital room. Good stuff, but exhausting. Did I say I was exhausted yet?

I don't know how some of you work full time and then parent challenging children. I come home, wiped out, and restrain for 1 1/2 hours while Akila rages. Not that it would be easier being home all day dealing with the issues, but once their back at school, at least I will have the day to re-energize. I need to start seriously working out so she doesn't get stronger than me.

Anyway, just wanted to let you all know (all 10 of you), that I'm here. Doing OK. Had a breakdown last night. Finally got word this week that we are approved for MA/TEFRA, and got a letter in the mail from Hennepin County. It was clear as mud. They are all horribly difficult to translate. It had $903 a month listed under each month back to February when Akila's MA is retroactive to. I thought it meant that was our monthly fee. Several years ago when I first looked into TEFRA, when I figured out the calculator thingie, it was around $900/month. We obviously did not apply. Then when I did it last winter, I realized it was only $112/month or so. I had Michael re-figure it and he came up with that. We were quite excited and started the process.

So this letter showing my original thought, FREAKED me out. I even cried briefly late last night. I have realized how much I am counting on getting some PCA help. I hope to goodness we qualify. I think I might have a break down otherwise.

I called Hennepin County this morning, learned that the $903/month is the max monthly income that Akila can make. The worker said she probably isn't making that at her age of 11. I said she would probably never make that much a month in her entire life. I also asked about getting reimbursed for some past bills since it is retro to Feb. 1. He said to have the providers bill the state. I said we had already paid. He said to have them still bill the state, and then the provider would owe us money. Brilliant system. Let me call 3 different clinics, 2 different pharmacies, have them re-submit everything, get paid, then cut me checks. Instead of me giving the state all the bills we have paid and proof of payment. Brilliant.

I also asked him if the county had any committees where parents were involved in making the communication process smoother. I said I knew he had nothing to do with the forms, but they were very difficult to understand. He said they are state DHS forms. I asked him to check with his supervisor and call me back so I would call the right people at the state to request to be on a work team or something to improve the process. My phone call to him was a total waste of my time and his. If the letter had not been so ridiculously unclear, it would have helped.

4 days left by the way. 4.