Health and welfare lpa

witts1973

Registered User
Jun 20, 2018
731
0
Leamington Spa
I look after my mum at home but only have a finance LPA,at the time the solicitor said you will be ok without the health lpa so we didn't go for it,I'm quite annoyed at this advice now but there isn't anything we can do about it,mums at home though and fine with me here full time with carers coming in,I hope everything will be ok without the health lpa,I just think we were badly advised
 

Jaded'n'faded

Registered User
Jan 23, 2019
5,258
0
High Peak
I'm a little further on - mum has been in a CH for 2 and a half years. In all that time, through hospital stays, care home admission and DoLS, I have never been asked if I have health POA for health and welfare. (I don't as we have the old-fashioned Enduring Power of Attorney for finances only.)

Why do you think you will need H & W POA?
 

Susan11

Registered User
Nov 18, 2018
5,064
0
I only have the Finance POA for my parents. I always felt I know enough to manage their money but i have no knowledge of medical procedures. When it came to the crunch and Dad was in hospital his consultant told me if the situation arose they would not resuscitate Dad . I was relieved that that decision had been made by someone who had the knowledge to assess the situation .
 

Duggies-girl

Registered User
Sep 6, 2017
3,620
0
I have both POA's and have never been asked about H & W POA except when dad's GP made out his DNR and even then he didn't ask to see it. I attend all of dad's appointments and have never had any problems...Dad's doctors and hospital consultants know dad has dementia so they talk to him and then ask him if they can talk to me as well and he always says yes. I may have just been lucky as dad is very compliant anyway.

Dad and I agreed that we would always take the doctors advice when we made out the POA and that has worked fine for us.
 

witts1973

Registered User
Jun 20, 2018
731
0
Leamington Spa
I'm a little further on - mum has been in a CH for 2 and a half years. In all that time, through hospital stays, care home admission and DoLS, I have never been asked if I have health POA for health and welfare. (I don't as we have the old-fashioned Enduring Power of Attorney for finances only.)

Why do you think you will need H & W POA?
That's the thing I don't know if we need it or not,I have read other people have it and I'm unsure if we are at a disadvantage,my mums at home and well looked after,I suppose if they ever try and put her in a home they could do that anyway regardless of me having the health LPA or not,it's just one of those things you think about now and again
I've had compliments from all visiting professionals concerning the level of care I give to mum,so I'm sure things will be ok.
 

witts1973

Registered User
Jun 20, 2018
731
0
Leamington Spa
I have both POA's and have never been asked about H & W POA except when dad's GP made out his DNR and even then he didn't ask to see it. I attend all of dad's appointments and have never had any problems...Dad's doctors and hospital consultants know dad has dementia so they talk to him and then ask him if they can talk to me as well and he always says yes. I may have just been lucky as dad is very compliant anyway.

Dad and I agreed that we would always take the doctors advice when we made out the POA and that has worked fine for us.

That's good,the only thing that ever happened to me was a data protection issue years ago,when I went to meet my mum at the GP's as I walked her there, but had to pop to the bank,when I went back to walk her safely home I asked if she was still there and said I was her son, as I couldn't see her in the waiting room, they said they were not allowed to tell me,so I waited on a chair facing reception for an hour so mum would have to pass me,but she had already gone home on her own,what a nonsense
 

Jaded'n'faded

Registered User
Jan 23, 2019
5,258
0
High Peak
That's good,the only thing that ever happened to me was a data protection issue years ago,when I went to meet my mum at the GP's as I walked her there, but had to pop to the bank,when I went back to walk her safely home I asked if she was still there and said I was her son, as I couldn't see her in the waiting room, they said they were not allowed to tell me,so I waited on a chair facing reception for an hour so mum would have to pass me,but she had already gone home on her own,what a nonsense

That's not data protection, it's just stupid. The staff need some dementia training.
 

Duggies-girl

Registered User
Sep 6, 2017
3,620
0
That's good,the only thing that ever happened to me was a data protection issue years ago,when I went to meet my mum at the GP's as I walked her there, but had to pop to the bank,when I went back to walk her safely home I asked if she was still there and said I was her son, as I couldn't see her in the waiting room, they said they were not allowed to tell me,so I waited on a chair facing reception for an hour so mum would have to pass me,but she had already gone home on her own,what a nonsense

That's mad. Even the receptionists will talk to me about dad. When I asked about some test results they told me, they know there is no point in telling dad because he has dementia and will forget instantly. There is a point when common sense must come into play. Dad's GP and his hospital team will always phone me if they want any information. One of his hospital nurses phoned dad once and had a lovely chat with him and then phoned me immediately after because she knew that dad didn't know what he was talking about because according to him , he was fine and had never had any hospital appointments.

Dad has given all of these people verbal permission to speak to me, in fact whenever we go to an appointment and is he asked how he is, he says he is fine but they should speak to me because I know more about it than he does.

He was most surprised to find that he had a pacemaker when we went to get his battery checked a while ago.
 

Sirena

Registered User
Feb 27, 2018
2,324
0
I only have finance LPA for my mother and I have never encountered any problems with not having H&W. I've dealt with care agencies, her GP and other doctors, and she is now in a care home. They all deal with me as NOK. The care home pharmacist rang earlier this year to discuss her medication and asked if I had H&W - but it was just a box-ticking exercise, she said "it won't make any difference what I say to you". I think H&W tends to be useful if there is disagreement amongst family members on care issues, but I don't have any relatives who take an interest.
 

witts1973

Registered User
Jun 20, 2018
731
0
Leamington Spa
That's mad. Even the receptionists will talk to me about dad. When I asked about some test results they told me, they know there is no point in telling dad because he has dementia and will forget instantly. There is a point when common sense must come into play. Dad's GP and his hospital team will always phone me if they want any information. One of his hospital nurses phoned dad once and had a lovely chat with him and then phoned me immediately after because she knew that dad didn't know what he was talking about because according to him , he was fine and had never had any hospital appointments.

Dad has given all of these people verbal permission to speak to me, in fact whenever we go to an appointment and is he asked how he is, he says he is fine but they should speak to me because I know more about it than he does.

He was most surprised to find that he had a pacemaker when we went to get his battery checked a while ago.
Hi that was pre dementia though,I have found receptionists a bit narky at the best of times at our practice,sometimes they don't even bother to look at you when they speak!
 

witts1973

Registered User
Jun 20, 2018
731
0
Leamington Spa
I only have finance LPA for my mother and I have never encountered any problems with not having H&W. I've dealt with care agencies, her GP and other doctors, and she is now in a care home. They all deal with me as NOK. The care home pharmacist rang earlier this year to discuss her medication and asked if I had H&W - but it was just a box-ticking exercise, she said "it won't make any difference what I say to you". I think H&W tends to be useful if there is disagreement amongst family members on care issues, but I don't have any relatives who take an interest.

Hi thanks everything has been ok,I talk to the doctors and arrange everything with them,and deal with the care company,I just wondered if I was going to encounter any problems
 

Philbo

Registered User
Feb 28, 2017
853
0
Kent
When my wife was first diagnosed, I was asked to take in a certified copy of her H&W LPA to her GP practice so they could copy for their records.

More recently, whilst she was in a care facility for an assessment (NHS funded prior to going into residential care home), the care centre wanted to copy it and so did the GP practise on site (their district nurse was attending my wife, due to a blister on her ankle).

And now she is tucked up in the nursing home, I had to show them both her LPAs (they were also registering her with their local GP practice).

I have also recently had to provide certified copies to the local authority, following a financial assessment.

Phew!
 

Beate

Registered User
May 21, 2014
12,179
0
London
I think the health LPA is asked for more and more these days. The hospital wanted to see it, the SW, the care home... And that was two years ago. Lots of solicitors seem to have given that dismissive advice but times have changed. Officials want to be covered in their work now. LPA registration costs have gone down to just £82, so it makes no sense anymore to leave it out for money saving reasons. Hopefully you won't encounter any difficulties, but I would advise anyone drawing them up now to go for both.
 

witts1973

Registered User
Jun 20, 2018
731
0
Leamington Spa
I think the health LPA is asked for more and more these days. The hospital wanted to see it, the SW, the care home... And that was two years ago. Lots of solicitors seem to have given that dismissive advice but times have changed. Officials want to be covered in their work now. LPA registration costs have gone down to just £82, so it makes no sense anymore to leave it out for money saving reasons. Hopefully you won't encounter any difficulties, but I would advise anyone drawing them up now to go for both.
I did think it was strange that they said we shouldn't bother as we didn't mind paying for one,the cynic in me feels that the solicitor knew she was on to a winner as we had asked her to be the executor,so she wasn't bothered about the cash from another health lpa.

We did want to remove her as executor after reading up on it and how they can charge an absolute fortune for something you can do yourself at little expense, but mum then had mobility issues and we didn't get round to the office,and further down the line mum was diagnosed
 

Sirena

Registered User
Feb 27, 2018
2,324
0
When my wife was first diagnosed, I was asked to take in a certified copy of her H&W LPA to her GP practice so they could copy for their records.

More recently, whilst she was in a care facility for an assessment (NHS funded prior to going into residential care home), the care centre wanted to copy it and so did the GP practise on site (their district nurse was attending my wife, due to a blister on her ankle).

And now she is tucked up in the nursing home, I had to show them both her LPAs (they were also registering her with their local GP practice).

I have also recently had to provide certified copies to the local authority, following a financial assessment.

Phew!

Hi Phil
Authorities will always ask if you have it, and if so they will of course want it on record (I gave a copy of my financial LPA to the care agency and care home - and to many other institutions!) But I wonder how much H&W matters in practice, I haven't encountered any problems so far - although obviously it would be preferable to have it 'just in case'.
 

LynneMcV

Volunteer Moderator
May 9, 2012
6,110
0
south-east London
Hi @witts1973 - like you, the solicitor advised us against taking out a health and welfare LPA, which I thought was very odd at the time.

I stuck with the decision for three years, but as the disease progressed, I decided that I'd rather have one in place, than not, even though doctors and consultants were talking with me quite freely about my husband's medical needs. We did this online.

As it was, my husband had a crisis in year four of his disease and ended up in a secure mental health unit for a couple of months. I produced the health and welfare LPA a few days into his stay there, when they were carrying out the DOLs process. Having said that, they had been keeping me fully informed of everything they were doing, even before I produced it, and I didn't get the feeling that anything would change even if I didn't have it in place. It just seemed to be a formality re the DOLs process.

A couple of years later there was another crisis, and through a very unique set of circumstances there were two occasions when I had to use my Health and Welfare LPA

One was when I personally gave my husband his prescribed medication after an emergency operation because there were two hospitals involved in his care and wires had got crossed to the point that my husband was going to be denied the medication he had specifically been provided with for when he came out of his operation.

The second time was on the same day. I used the LPA to discharge him from the A&E hospital (with no dementia trained nurses or 1:1 staff) back to a dementia specific ward at the hospital he had come from, where he had a team of doctors, nurses and carers ready and waiting for his return, with 1:1 support in place.

Had I not stepped in he would have been in real danger of injuring himself or others as he needed 1:1 support 24/7 due to confusion, mobility issues leading to falls - and aggression. They simply would not have coped.

Basically, you don't know you need these things until you need them - and our situation really was outside the norm.

Try not to worry unduly about something you cannot change now (assuming your mother no longer has capacity). I can honestly say that I would have been fine without a health and welfare LPA had it not been for those two quite unusual circumstances which came in the final months of my husband's 6 year illness.
 

witts1973

Registered User
Jun 20, 2018
731
0
Leamington Spa
Hi @witts1973 - like you, the solicitor advised us against taking out a health and welfare LPA, which I thought was very odd at the time.

I stuck with the decision for three years, but as the disease progressed, I decided that I'd rather have one in place, than not, even though doctors and consultants were talking with me quite freely about my husband's medical needs. We did this online.

As it was, my husband had a crisis in year four of his disease and ended up in a secure mental health unit for a couple of months. I produced the health and welfare LPA a few days into his stay there, when they were carrying out the DOLs process. Having said that, they had been keeping me fully informed of everything they were doing, even before I produced it, and I didn't get the feeling that anything would change even if I didn't have it in place. It just seemed to be a formality re the DOLs process.

A couple of years later there was another crisis, and through a very unique set of circumstances there were two occasions when I had to use my Health and Welfare LPA

One was when I personally gave my husband his prescribed medication after an emergency operation because there were two hospitals involved in his care and wires had got crossed to the point that my husband was going to be denied the medication he had specifically been provided with for when he came out of his operation.

The second time was on the same day. I used the LPA to discharge him from the A&E hospital (with no dementia trained nurses or 1:1 staff) back to a dementia specific ward at the hospital he had come from, where he had a team of doctors, nurses and carers ready and waiting for his return, with 1:1 support in place.

Had I not stepped in he would have been in real danger of injuring himself or others as he needed 1:1 support 24/7 due to confusion, mobility issues leading to falls - and aggression. They simply would not have coped.

Basically, you don't know you need these things until you need them - and our situation really was outside the norm.

Try not to worry unduly about something you cannot change now (assuming your mother no longer has capacity). I can honestly say that I would have been fine without a health and welfare LPA had it not been for those two quite unusual circumstances which came in the final months of my husband's 6 year illness.
Thanks x
 

anxious annie

Registered User
Jan 2, 2019
808
0
Hi
I was asked by mum's GP surgery for the Health LPA ( not sure if they would have spoken to me about mum's appointments without this). Also when mum was being seen by the local hospital I used to take her to appointments, but they always sent correspondence to mum's home address. When I phoned them to rearrange an appointment for when I was next visiting mum ( I live a 3 hour drive away), the secretary wouldn't talk to me until i had sent in a copy of the LPA, so i would always reccomend anyone to have this as well as the Finance LPA if your PWD still has capacity. You can download the from from the government web site rather than pay a solicitor. The website has guidance too, just make sure you go for the "jointly and severally" option , so attorneys can do things independently if you can't all get together when things need to be done quickly.
 

Helly68

Registered User
Mar 12, 2018
1,685
0
I have H&W for my Mum, as even before dementia she had fairly severe mental health problems. It is my understanding that because of this, and with the DOLs team, we are able to "covertly" give medication - i.e. as a liquid or in her food. I am also consulted about her ongoing lithium therapy for bipolar disorder. When her finger swelled and her ring got stuck, I removed it safely with a ring cutter, and the home let me because I had the H&W LPA. The last is pretty unusual but gives an example of the sort of thing where it has been raised.