My brother, 54 years of age, told me and hisdaughter that he has been
disgnosed with early stage Alzheimer's Disease.  He refuses to allow
me or his daughter to talk with his doctor, and will not discuss
anything about the future, his likely diminished capacity, and so
forth.  At this point he is forgetting names, and occasionally where
he is going when driving, however he can get back to his house (he
lives in NY State).  He lives alone, is divorced, and is very
isolated.  What can I do with regard to finding out from his doctor
what is prognosis is, as well as disposition of other matters when the
disease progresses.  He has always been a very stubborn person, and
now his behavior is worse.

Dear tango1230-ga;

Thank you for allowing me to answer your interesting question. My
heart goes out to you. I know this isn?t what you had hoped to hear
but even now your brother has the right to make his own choices. You
cannot legally make choices for him or intervene in his affairs unless
you have legal permission or a legal right to do so. If he denies this
right to you (or you have not legally obtained this right through
other means) the only way that you can aggressively (or even
passively) intervene or override is choices is to have his declared
legally incompetent. Unfortunately, at the moment, you may very well
be limited in how much help you can give your brother.  Unless he is
declared "incompetent," which is a legal term, you have to respect his
right to make his own choices even if the outcome is not good. This is
one of the most difficult situations loved ones have to face with
Alzheimer?s afflicted family and friends.

As his next of kin, his daughter (or other child) will likely be the
one(s) to initiate such a legal maneuver. By petitioning the court for
power of attorney, power of attorney for health care and/or a
conservatorship. This will enable the legal ?agent? (sometimes called
"attorney-in-fact") to make all decisions related to financial,
medical and other affairs in his behalf, with or without his consent.
Alternatively, assuming the man is reasonable and willing, a limited
power of attorney might be granted by the man while he is still lucid
without having to go to court.

I strongly recommend you contact one of these agencies. They are all
well prepared to answer many of your questions and they can certainly
understand and relate to your difficult dilemma:

ALZHEIMER?S ASSOCIATION
http://www.alz.org/

Alzheimer's Association of NYC Chapter
(212) 983-0700
360 Lexington Ave
New York, NY 10017
http://www.alznyc.org/

NEW YORK OFFICES FOR THE AGING
http://aging.state.ny.us/findhelp/lofa.htm

You might also contact some type of legal counsel for further
direction, or seek out a local legal aid center near you that provides
free legal advice.


I hope you find that my research exceeds your expectations. If you
have any questions about my research please post a clarification
request prior to rating the answer. Otherwise I welcome your rating
and your final comments and I look forward to working with you again
in the near future. Thank you for bringing your question to us.

Best regards;
Tutuzdad-ga ? Google Answers Researcher



INFORMATION SOURCES

WEB MD
http://my.webmd.com/content/article/71/81384.htm?z=1626_00000_0000_ep_02

LEGALITY AND ALZHEIMER'S
http://www.mhsource.com/expert/exp1102901b.html

ALZHEIMER?S ASSOCIATION
?STEPS TO UNDERSTANDING LEGAL ISSUES?
http://www.alz.org/grtrcinc/hwCGLegalIssues.htm

ALZHEIMER?S ASSOCIATION
http://www.alz.org/

ALZHEIMER'S ASSOCIATION OF NYC CHAPTER
http://www.alznyc.org/

NEW YORK OFFICES FOR THE AGING
http://aging.state.ny.us/findhelp/lofa.htm


SEARCH STRATEGY


SEARCH ENGINE USED:

Google ://www.google.com


SEARCH TERMS USED:

ALZHEIMER?S

LEGAL 

RIGHT

PRIVACY

MEDICAL RECORDS

INCOMPETENT

POWER OF ATTORNEY

DECISIONS

DECLARED

INTERVENE

Thank you for this complete response!

After that excellent and commendable answer I'd like to add another
side to the story....
Check out Alzheimer's on this page:
    http://www.drhuggins.com/default.asp?PageName=Library%20-%20treasury%20of%20information%20on%20dental%20toxicity

    If for some reason the link fails go to www.drhuggins.com, then to
LIBARRY, then to "Treasury of Information on Dental Toxicity Issues"
and scroll down to ALZHEIMERS (it is under autoimmune diseases).

    Alzheimers has been reversed.  There is no yellow brick road that
everyone can follow but there is a way if worked at...even by the
person with Alzheimers as evidenced by Tom Warren who wrote the book

Beating Alzheimer's: A Step Towards Unlocking the Mysteries of Brain Diseases 


TOM WARREN also has the web site  http://www.midnightcafe.com/alzh/default.asp

One thing good to know about IS something called TOTAL DENTAL REVISION
(TDR).  I had it done and I recovered my life...although my problem
was not Alzheimers.  In TDR all dental work by modern dentistry is
undone--all metals removed, all root canal teeth (dead teeth dripping
toxins into your system) are removed, any infection in the bone left
in pockets where teeth have been pulled over the years is removed. 
You are left with a healthy mouth and jawbone.  You have options from
there to get the empty spaces filled in but that's too long a story
for here.    Part of the problem with putting metals in your teeth is
the electrogalvanism created by mixing the metals with saliva.  This
creates a battery generating DC current which goes right to the brain
(been there, done that).

If you tell me that your brother has never been to a dentist and has
all his own teeth then this possibility is eliminated.  It is just
part of the search and your brother needs to keep searching.
   BLESS YOU ALL