Care and Share Association

Mrs D is a woman with a serious, long-term medical condition who lives with her teenage daughter.

When we first became involved, the interior of the house was very messy with clothing and rubbish strewn all over. Mrs D was unable to access the upstairs bathroom due to being unable to walk and manage the stairs. Further to this they were financially unstable, with Mrs D being in debt to many agencies, including her never having paid a water bill for over a year.

After liaising with her social worker we secured an increase in her care budget and took over the shopping and cleaning of the property. We obtained proper bins so that the rubbish was managed properly. We managed to provide very regular carers who got to know both Mrs D and her daughter. The state of the house slowly improved as a result of our providing a regular cleaning service and prompting Mrs D and her daughter to clean up after themselves.

Further liaising with Mrs D and the Social Worker resulted in her giving us permission to manage her household budget. By working closely with Mrs D we have helped her get out of debt.

After liaising with the Social Worker, Housing and Aids and Adaptations, we helped to get Mrs D and her daughter successfully re-housed into a fully adapted property. We arranged assessments for equipment such as adapted cutlery, a helping hand stick and a shower chair, so now she can access a bathroom. We have also sorted out many smaller problems along the way such as her pendant alarm and a number of repairs.

Mrs D has an Individual Budget. We discussed her needs with her and rearranged her budget/care plan to incorporate her being taken out into the community with a carer. She is able to do her own shopping and where she does not feel up to going out, the carer will spend time with her doing her hair and nails. We also found a centre for her to visit and made arrangements for her to attend once a week. This has all gone towards raising her self-esteem. Mrs D’s daughter has told us she feels better now she does not have to deal with running the household on her own. She speaks with the carers on a weekly basis and is able to contact us by telephone if she is having any difficulties.

We received a package of care for Mr B, an elderly gentleman who lived in a quite area situated on the outskirts of town.

Mr B, who was an amputee, never left his house due to lack of confidence. He spent most of his long lonely days in bed, sleeping as if he had given up and felt he had no purpose to life. When the carers went in he would refuse his medication and any other help that was offered.

The carers and his Social Worker over a period of time gently persuaded him to move to better and fully adapted accommodation. He moved, and now has a regular team of carers who work with him. This shy man who never went out finally has a reason to get up in the morning he enjoys day trips and socialising and is now enjoying his life to the maximum!

Mrs A is an elderly lady who lives on her own.

At the point we became involved, she had lost her confidence in walking as a result of a fall. With time, patience, encouragement and regular help from two excellent support workers, Mrs A’s confidence is rebuilding on a daily basis. She is now able to mobilise with confidence and is able to do much more for herself.

We had a recent example where staff raised concerns about Mrs G, who became unwell, visibly frail and showed signs of depression which was unusual.

Staff reported this to their Manager who visited. Mrs G opened up about her fear of choking as she was constantly coughing. She was encouraged to seek medical support which she did. There was nothing physically making her react in this way. To support Mrs G to build up her strength again the care team and Mrs G met with a Nutritionist from the surgery. Menu options were discussed, ways to prepare food to make it easier for Mrs G to swallow were found and as she participated in the session, she was able to ensure that her choices and preferences were always considered. The outcome was that Mrs G’s health and wellbeing began to improve; she returned to her cheerful self and gradually started to reintroduce some of the foods she had been missing.