The only patient of the day is an Alzheimer’s patient, as a hospice nurse Erin goes from house to house to take care of those that are physically unable to do it themselves. We finally reach our destination at the end of a cul-de-sac. The one story home is a dull faded blue color, a result of the suns rays beating on the fragile house. When you enter the home the inside is surprisingly cold, but the smell is predictably musty. The clutter in the house is pushed into the corners of the room, but the open floor plan leaves just enough space for the hospital bed to the left side of the room. On the right side of the home is a poorly decorated living room, mismatched pillows in varying colors, and different styles of furniture are spread around evenly. An older woman sits on the couch reading a magazine. She looks up only briefly to see who has entered her household and quickly returns to her article when she realizes it’s her husband’s caretaker. Erin makes her way to the hospital bed where the elderly man lay motionless. She begins the routine checkup with getting his heart rate and finishes with turning him to prevent bed sores. The woman now stands next to Erin, she looks thin and frail, as if she could collapse at any moment. Her hair is short and unnaturally black, grey roots showing at the top of her head. Her tired hopeless eyes show that her husband has been…show more content… Erin tells me that hospice nurses typically take care of people with Alzheimer’s and varying cancers who are too physically weak to receive treatment. She goes on to say that while many are in need of hospice care, there are many obstacles and the biggest is insurance. The most common insurance, Medicaid and Medicare, have an unreasonable list of requirements for patients if they want their care to be covered by insurance. In contrast, private insurances are easier to work with and qualify more