Dear Debbie, Dear Debbie,
My mother has become quite forgetful recently. I work long hours and cannot manage to get down there every day. The situation is not critical at the moment but I fear she will need help in the very near future. However, she is resistant to receiving care. She is fiercely independent and feels she can manage on her own. What do you suggest? Yours sincerely,
Peter
Dear Sarah, Hi Peter,
My elderly father lives alone and still manages to achieve a high degree of independence. He has mobility problems though and my concern is that he has become quite housebound and I think a little depressed. He only gets out when I am able to visit to take him out. Is this the kind of problem that home care can help with? Yours sincerely, Sarah
Most of us go through life completely independent and take for granted what we can manage on a daily basis. Unfortunately, if we find ourselves in a situation where we find daily tasks more dif- ficult or we are unable to achieve the things we used to, this can be quite difficult to come to terms with. A common misconception about care is that it is for individuals that cannot do anything for themselves or for individuals that cannot cope. This may well be how your mother feels. On the contrary, care at home is provided to ensure individuals maintain their quality of life and inde- pendence for as long as possible. A good idea is to let someone warm to the prospect of care by introducing it slowly. Perhaps starting with a domestic call once a week so the Care Worker can check on her general well-being and build a professional relationship which will be needed to make your mother feel comfortable and build enough trust to have more visits as her needs increase. Best wishes,
Debbie Moulton, Care Manager, Bluebird Care Debbie Moulton, Care Manager, Bluebird Care
A modern care agency is equipped to take a holistic approach to the well-being of a vulnerable person, dealing not only with basic needs but also seeking to improve life quality. For example, assisting with taking trips out to favourite locations. Most care agencies insist that all Care Workers taken on need to have their own transport – the costs of which are reimbursed on a per mile basis by the care agency. Losing the ability to keep in touch with the local area and the people that live there can contribute to depression, once ageing makes people frail and vulnerable. Just getting out to the local café for a cup of tea every now and again to watch people going about their daily business can make a big difference. As long as the Care Workers own car insurance arrangements stipulate that they are covered for “business use”, a Care Worker should be able to take your father out in the car whenever he wants either to the shops, the library, the garden centre, or wherever he wishes. Best wishes,
If you have a question that you would like to ask Debbie then please email her at
debbie@bluebirdcare.co.uk
MAIDSTONE • 01622 807451 •
maidstone@bluebirdcare.co.uk www.bluebirdcare.co.uk/maidstone
GRAVESEND • 01474 888497 •
gravesham@bluebirdcare.co.uk www.bluebirdcare.co.uk/gravesham-dartford
Malling March 2014 9
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