(CBS News) NORTHPORT, N.Y. - It's a story that makes you think, \"What are the chances?\" It started with a mystery at a nursing home we visited, \"On the Road.\" <\/p>\n
John Angerame says when you love someone with advanced dementia -- like his father has -- you can't help but wonder: Are they still in there? <\/p>\n
John asks his dad Augie for even the littlest signs that he's present, like a wink or blink. <\/p>\n
Fortunately, although Augie can't communicate, by all indications he is aware -- beyond words. <\/p>\n
Augie Angerame served in the Korean War, in an artillery unit. He was a medic, which may partly explain his recent behavior at his VA nursing home on Long Island. <\/p>\n
A few months ago, Augie started going into the room of another veteran with dementia named Frank Dibella. <\/p>\n
\"And I was like, 'What's this man doing?'\" recalled Frank's daughter, Mary Rose Monroe. \"He'd rub his back and then he'd walk away.\" <\/p>\n
\"Just check on him,\" John Angerame added, \"like maybe a medic would do as he made rounds.\" <\/p>\n
The kids agreed: It seemed like Augie was trying to care for Frank -- like he was back in the war. Frank didn't seem to mind. The staff eventually moved the two men into the same room. <\/p>\n
And that's when John started putting the pieces together. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
See original here: (CBS News) NORTHPORT, N.Y. - It's a story that makes you think, \"What are the chances?\" It started with a mystery at a nursing home we visited, \"On the Road.\" John Angerame says when you love someone with advanced dementia -- like his father has -- you can't help but wonder: Are they still in there Continue reading
\nEven in dementia, medic cares for vet<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"