Since coming out of hospital SS have arranged carers to come in for 6 weeks. However at first it was good. Gave me a little break and the carer was lovely. However, now every day at every visit its a different carer. Mum is now getting undressed and putting herself to bed much earlier than the designated time of the carer so its pointless them turning up. Ditto lunchtime. They only make a sandwich and a cup of tea and go like a whirling dervish. I even have to leave notes fo them otherwise they don't ask her what she wants just dive in the fridge to the first available thing that looks like something that will fill a sandwich. It's not really giving me a break as it would take me 5 minutes to do a sandwich and a cuppa for Mum. What Mum needs is company which is something I can't help her with, or at least I am spending so much time with her because I get upset if she's on her own too long, its not really doing me any favours. I really don't know how daughter/sons totally rely on carers coming in when their nearest and dearest live miles and miles away. Yes, carers do a fantastic job but unless you spell everything out to them absolutely, they don't deliver. A few times Mum has told them I will be doing her lunch (caused by her AZ) so they took that as gospel and when I went into her a little later she'd had nothing to eat or drink!
What do you think of carers!
- Thread starter SueShell
- Start date
I'm afraid that is exactly how you described it. The carers are usually very pressed for time and can't stay long. Mum's carers were private but they were also in and out as they had a heavy schedule. It isn't ideal at all. And they cannot possibly give the care Mum is getting now in the CH as they don't have time!
When Mum went into the CH in April she was undernourished, unkempt and her house was a tip. This, despite carers 5 times a day.
When Mum went into the CH in April she was undernourished, unkempt and her house was a tip. This, despite carers 5 times a day.
My MIL has care workers call twice a day. They are to bath, dress her and give her breakfast. Very often she will tell them that she is going out for breakfast or going to her daughters for a shower.....these events simply do not occur....but no amount of contacting their boss to tell them changes them not doing what they are supposed to do.
The biggest concern I have to be honest is they are supposed to call within a set time in the evening to change her incontinence pad, make supper and help her into night clothes ensuring the home is secure when they leave .... They for the most part do this....but call before their allocated time and do not record the correct time on the sheets.
I have raised this often stressing how important it is to accurately record this time - I am not talking 5 or 10 mins but often up to half and hour or 40 mins before their allocated time....they do not seem to appreciate that if should something happen to MIL it would cause all sorts of issues if they said they were with her when they weren't!!!!!
Generally we are pleased with what the care workers do - but do see some are better than others.....they indicate they have washed breakfast dishes and left the kitchen tidy when I would sometimes call within 15 mins of their leaving and they very clearly have not......but they do call and it is some reassurance that someone is there first thing in the morning when family members cannot do so.
B x
The biggest concern I have to be honest is they are supposed to call within a set time in the evening to change her incontinence pad, make supper and help her into night clothes ensuring the home is secure when they leave .... They for the most part do this....but call before their allocated time and do not record the correct time on the sheets.
I have raised this often stressing how important it is to accurately record this time - I am not talking 5 or 10 mins but often up to half and hour or 40 mins before their allocated time....they do not seem to appreciate that if should something happen to MIL it would cause all sorts of issues if they said they were with her when they weren't!!!!!
Generally we are pleased with what the care workers do - but do see some are better than others.....they indicate they have washed breakfast dishes and left the kitchen tidy when I would sometimes call within 15 mins of their leaving and they very clearly have not......but they do call and it is some reassurance that someone is there first thing in the morning when family members cannot do so.
B x
Hit and Miss
My mum had carers 3 times a day (local authority) . They were on a punishing time limit.
At one stage we had the madness of one carer getting to Mum @ 10.30 am to get her up and breakfast.Then 11.30am lunch time carer doing lunch.
They must have known as they write in the report book time in time out etc.
When I rang and complained was told mornings can be any time from 7 till 11. Lunch 11.30 till 1.30. And they did have a lot of people to get round .
I said why would you do her a late breakfast and an early lunch. It had to fit in with what carers were on.
I asked to speak to a manager. Told her I would cancel the lunch time carer if they kept getting there early.
Seemed to do the trick.Also was disturbed to see carer on 3 days running had written Mum refused eye drops.Mum must have these drops to keep eye pressure stable or she could go blind. Carer unaware of this. Left large note in book.
In the end along with carers, we paid a lady we knew to pop in 3 days a week for a couple of hours to take Mum out or have a chat.
What I learned was never assume that every thing is being done professionally. Double check and question every thing. Never think well they must know what they are doing !!!
My mum had carers 3 times a day (local authority) . They were on a punishing time limit.
At one stage we had the madness of one carer getting to Mum @ 10.30 am to get her up and breakfast.Then 11.30am lunch time carer doing lunch.
They must have known as they write in the report book time in time out etc.
When I rang and complained was told mornings can be any time from 7 till 11. Lunch 11.30 till 1.30. And they did have a lot of people to get round .
I said why would you do her a late breakfast and an early lunch. It had to fit in with what carers were on.
I asked to speak to a manager. Told her I would cancel the lunch time carer if they kept getting there early.
Seemed to do the trick.Also was disturbed to see carer on 3 days running had written Mum refused eye drops.Mum must have these drops to keep eye pressure stable or she could go blind. Carer unaware of this. Left large note in book.
In the end along with carers, we paid a lady we knew to pop in 3 days a week for a couple of hours to take Mum out or have a chat.
What I learned was never assume that every thing is being done professionally. Double check and question every thing. Never think well they must know what they are doing !!!
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I think it can take a while to settle down into a good routine. It is definitely worth contacting the agency and making any comments to them. We did settle into having a good team of carers coming to our home, but don't be afraid to phone or contact the agency and make your concerns known to them.
I hope it all settles down very soon for you. c
I hope it all settles down very soon for you. c
Carers can be very variable. I do agree that many have stupid time scales - particularly between clients -and their administration is ****. They gave one lovely girl five minutes to get from one to the other - along a very busy road and at night and she told me when she arrived that she had come as fast as she could because she knew Mum would be getting agitated. I told her never to put herself at risk by driving too fast - then she told me the previous client was 12 miles away!
All the carers know now that I am likely to ring when they are there and I will check what is done, will report if things aren't and equally will stick up for them with their boss and sing their praises where due. They all now chat to me and would say that for 80% of them they are OK. We have a great main carer - Lovely Lisa and she is the reason we stay with this agency as she is in for Mums main visits (she has four carers visits a day)
I have been accused of having standards that are too high but told them that I look out for Mum and merely expect them to do their job properly - which includes scheduling properly. I know the admin aren't fond of me but tough. Worries me what happens to those who have no-one checking and chasing for them.
So I would just say keep on and on and on - send emails with read requests - offer to copy to the SS if they feel unable to meet the agreed standards etc etc. Most SS depts have a maximum number of carers anyone is supposed to have - Mums is meant to be 4 - to ensure continuity. I also re-wrote and corrected the care plan and they now check changes with me.
Horrible that you have to be like it - especially as part of the reason for some of Mums visits was to take the pressure off for the family but I always have to ring and check or remind re something.
Good luck and put your foot down with a firm hand as to what they are to do.
x
All the carers know now that I am likely to ring when they are there and I will check what is done, will report if things aren't and equally will stick up for them with their boss and sing their praises where due. They all now chat to me and would say that for 80% of them they are OK. We have a great main carer - Lovely Lisa and she is the reason we stay with this agency as she is in for Mums main visits (she has four carers visits a day)
I have been accused of having standards that are too high but told them that I look out for Mum and merely expect them to do their job properly - which includes scheduling properly. I know the admin aren't fond of me but tough. Worries me what happens to those who have no-one checking and chasing for them.
So I would just say keep on and on and on - send emails with read requests - offer to copy to the SS if they feel unable to meet the agreed standards etc etc. Most SS depts have a maximum number of carers anyone is supposed to have - Mums is meant to be 4 - to ensure continuity. I also re-wrote and corrected the care plan and they now check changes with me.
Horrible that you have to be like it - especially as part of the reason for some of Mums visits was to take the pressure off for the family but I always have to ring and check or remind re something.
Good luck and put your foot down with a firm hand as to what they are to do.
x
The one advantage of family carers, be it 1 minute a day or 24 hours per day, is when they walk in, they know EXACTLY what they have walked into.
I think family carers can feel and see things far quicker than paid carers, hence can adapt very quickly to the current situation infront of them. Whereas, the paid carer generally have no knowledge of the history of their clients.
I for one feel for the paid carers at the coalface. The whole system seems to be driven by money and statistics. There are certain businesses that perhaps work very well to stats and £'s; caring I believe is not one of them.
That said, will now argue against myself because time is money !
I think family carers can feel and see things far quicker than paid carers, hence can adapt very quickly to the current situation infront of them. Whereas, the paid carer generally have no knowledge of the history of their clients.
I for one feel for the paid carers at the coalface. The whole system seems to be driven by money and statistics. There are certain businesses that perhaps work very well to stats and £'s; caring I believe is not one of them.
That said, will now argue against myself because time is money !
We have a home help (from the Health Service) once a week for 1 1/2 hours - but her travelling time to us is taken out of that 1 1/2 hours. This means in effect, that she is here for about 1 hour 10 minutes, as it takes between 15 and 20 minutes for her to get to us from her previous client. She just does housework.
I'm kind of on both sides of this fence, as I do a few hours part time work in home care and am trained for that (although at the moment it just involves helping with housework too) and am caring full time for my husband with dementia. The theory is that you build a trusting relationship with the client, and so will be able to spot changes, difficulties etc. as they are arising - and as I've been working with the same lady for ten years or so, and I spend over two hours at a time there twice a week, and part of the job (while I help her with housework) is observing her and her condition, in this case it works well. There have been occasions when I've realised before she did (from her symptoms)that she was not getting enough oxygen at night, which meant the machine she sleeps connected to was malfunctioning, and so she was alerted to that possibility, where she thought she was coming down with a cold. But - I have spoken to other carers who have such a tight schedule, and tell me they are given not quite an hour to get in to an elderly person's house, persuade them into a shower, dry them, dress them, prepare a meal and make sure they eat it. As they say - how would any of us react if someone we barely knew came to our door and expected us to immediately strip for them, and get in the shower with them watching?? As one carer told me "Sometimes with some clients, it can take an hour to get them to let you in the door!" - Even my husband, it takes me anything up to half an hour to gently prepare him and persuade him to let me help him to bathe! And if a person refuses, there really is nothing a carer can do - if they force the issue, they are open to accusations of assault. And if the carers are really pushed for time, they simply can't be as observant of the person's condition and health as they should be. It becomes, sadly, as if the person they are "caring for" is secondary to getting in, getting the work done, and getting out as fast as possible - they'd be able to do it fast enough for efficiency if it wasn't for that elderly/ill person slowing them down!!
The issue of food is something else though. I have heard stories where "food safety" rules had to be abandoned, i.e. where carers prepared a tea of sandwiches for later, and put them in the fridge, they weren't being eaten, because the client would forget. So the carer finally just prepared his tea - sandwiches, cup, drop of milk in a jug etc.and left it on the table where he would see it. Not ideal, but at least it got eaten!
I'm kind of on both sides of this fence, as I do a few hours part time work in home care and am trained for that (although at the moment it just involves helping with housework too) and am caring full time for my husband with dementia. The theory is that you build a trusting relationship with the client, and so will be able to spot changes, difficulties etc. as they are arising - and as I've been working with the same lady for ten years or so, and I spend over two hours at a time there twice a week, and part of the job (while I help her with housework) is observing her and her condition, in this case it works well. There have been occasions when I've realised before she did (from her symptoms)that she was not getting enough oxygen at night, which meant the machine she sleeps connected to was malfunctioning, and so she was alerted to that possibility, where she thought she was coming down with a cold. But - I have spoken to other carers who have such a tight schedule, and tell me they are given not quite an hour to get in to an elderly person's house, persuade them into a shower, dry them, dress them, prepare a meal and make sure they eat it. As they say - how would any of us react if someone we barely knew came to our door and expected us to immediately strip for them, and get in the shower with them watching?? As one carer told me "Sometimes with some clients, it can take an hour to get them to let you in the door!" - Even my husband, it takes me anything up to half an hour to gently prepare him and persuade him to let me help him to bathe! And if a person refuses, there really is nothing a carer can do - if they force the issue, they are open to accusations of assault. And if the carers are really pushed for time, they simply can't be as observant of the person's condition and health as they should be. It becomes, sadly, as if the person they are "caring for" is secondary to getting in, getting the work done, and getting out as fast as possible - they'd be able to do it fast enough for efficiency if it wasn't for that elderly/ill person slowing them down!!
The issue of food is something else though. I have heard stories where "food safety" rules had to be abandoned, i.e. where carers prepared a tea of sandwiches for later, and put them in the fridge, they weren't being eaten, because the client would forget. So the carer finally just prepared his tea - sandwiches, cup, drop of milk in a jug etc.and left it on the table where he would see it. Not ideal, but at least it got eaten!
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Twenty years ago my MIL required carers as we lived a distance away. We started with morning to get her up, supervise washing and dressing and give breakfast. My husband used his lunch hour to go and make her lunch and leave drinks and her tea of sandwiches and a cake. The carers were then to call in the evening to get her ready for bed and into bed. We found out that she was being visited very late morning and as early as 4.00pm in the evening. Spoke to the Manager of the carers and was told someone has to be first and someone has to be last. I could understand this but why could those who were visited last in the morning no be visited last in the evening. Why did they think it was good care to get someone up late and but them to bed before 5pm.
We only found out about this practice when MIL fell. She got herself out of bed and ready and bending to put the fire on fell. She was found on the floor by the carer who came in near to lunchtime. She fell again when he had been put to bed at 5pm and go out again when they had gone. She wanted to see the news on tv and again lost her balance switching the tv on. The only way we could stop the falls was to have her living in a care home. She was quite happy to go and enjoyed the company but with better care she could have stayed at home a little longer, not much longer if I am honest but a little longer and maybe also avoided the falls.
I think it was this experience that made me decide that I would manage without outside care when my husband developed alzheimers. From reading the posts on this thread, very little seems to have changed over the past 20 years, in fact it is probably worse as there seems to be a much heavier work load for agencies to deal with.
Jay
We only found out about this practice when MIL fell. She got herself out of bed and ready and bending to put the fire on fell. She was found on the floor by the carer who came in near to lunchtime. She fell again when he had been put to bed at 5pm and go out again when they had gone. She wanted to see the news on tv and again lost her balance switching the tv on. The only way we could stop the falls was to have her living in a care home. She was quite happy to go and enjoyed the company but with better care she could have stayed at home a little longer, not much longer if I am honest but a little longer and maybe also avoided the falls.
I think it was this experience that made me decide that I would manage without outside care when my husband developed alzheimers. From reading the posts on this thread, very little seems to have changed over the past 20 years, in fact it is probably worse as there seems to be a much heavier work load for agencies to deal with.
Jay
I have seen it all and what happened today just proves it.
All the above is very familiar. I work for social services so am aware of different sides of the issue.I dont think there is anyone who doesnt regret the current situation in SS, that budgets are being pruned and so are allotted care visits.
Today I overslept rsuhed off to work and something made me call the care agency to check cover.Firstly couldnt find client details....then oh all the care has been cancelled until Jan 2nd!!!!NOOOO!!
I had completed a xmas cover questionnaire and spoken to the supervisor and I know they have had it as the call mum had on saturday was on the list.They have cobbled together cover I hope.Tonught mums lovely carer from Crossroads came and I had 2 hrs off.
So beware as one post says check and check again, leave messages etc.Its terrifying to think of people who have no family support .
Px
All the above is very familiar. I work for social services so am aware of different sides of the issue.I dont think there is anyone who doesnt regret the current situation in SS, that budgets are being pruned and so are allotted care visits.
Today I overslept rsuhed off to work and something made me call the care agency to check cover.Firstly couldnt find client details....then oh all the care has been cancelled until Jan 2nd!!!!NOOOO!!
I had completed a xmas cover questionnaire and spoken to the supervisor and I know they have had it as the call mum had on saturday was on the list.They have cobbled together cover I hope.Tonught mums lovely carer from Crossroads came and I had 2 hrs off.
So beware as one post says check and check again, leave messages etc.Its terrifying to think of people who have no family support .
Px
It is a coincidence i should see this post after a day of writing a letter of complaint to our local authority.
We have had a mixed experience with carers. Our local authority council carers were the best of the lot. They are on the best pay and conditions and get petrol allowances, and they seem to be the happiest in their jobs. However, we only had them when dad first came out of hospital and was getting rehabilitation. Then, it went onto private agency care paid for by the council. One or two of them have been ok. They turn up on time at least and some of them try to help my 85'year old mum by stripping wet beds in the morning, bagging dirty pads and slips, and taking clothes down to the washing machine. I know how hard it is to get the right people to do this important job, and we so appreciate the kind, good carers who do the job for the right reasons. But some of them don't deserve to be called 'carers' ...it's a contradiction in terms.
Last night my mum phoned me in a right state about one particular agency carer who has been there before and is absolutely terrible . They are all given half an hour to attend to dad, unless it is a bath day where he gets more time. Last night, the 'carer' came in, went up the stairs with dad, stripped him and dressed him in his pj 's in less than ten minutes. In that time, she could not possibly have washed him, or put his diprobase cream on, or helped him with his teeth cleaning etc. dad is doubly incontinent, and because of this, and sitting in damp pads, the carer is told to help him wash twice per day. Anyway, the woman then came downstairs alone, mum said, are you going to your next client now, and she said no, I have to wait for half an hour to phone in or I don't get paid. So mum said, where is my husband then, is he in bed? The carer said no, he is coming down now, and plonked herself on the settee and sat watching the telly! Mum went out to the the hall to find dad, confused and frail the poor old soul, standing at the top of the stairs, no slippers or dressing gown on, his pj's wrongly buttoned up, he was shaking and asking he if he could come down!! My mum is a little mouse and would not give the carer a mouthful, she didnt know what to do. If I had been there the madam would have got a slap! Mum had to go up, help dad into his slippers and gown and down the stairs and sit in her own home in an awkward silence, while this lazy bisom sat on their couch reading their paper for 20 minutes until she phoned in to say she was finished and going to her next client and left! There is more....leaving his clothes where she stripped him and just thrown in the doorway for him to possibly trip over, wet pad thrown in the bath etc...but it would take forever to list it all here....suffice to say i was horrified, and called the agency and the council this morning to say we never wanted that carer to attend to dad again, and have written a letter of complaint. Mum needs help, not a 'carer' who by her very presence brings grief and worry and upset. All the training in the world would never make this woman a 'carer '. I suppose there are always some bad apples, but there must be other people who are under the care of this woman, perhaps alone with no one else to look out or them, perhaps frightened or unsure to make a complaint, and she is whizzing through the job in ten mins and sitting on their couch watching telly and getting paid for it! It makes my blood boil!!
Sorry for typos and wrong spelling....this iPad is awful to type on!
We have had a mixed experience with carers. Our local authority council carers were the best of the lot. They are on the best pay and conditions and get petrol allowances, and they seem to be the happiest in their jobs. However, we only had them when dad first came out of hospital and was getting rehabilitation. Then, it went onto private agency care paid for by the council. One or two of them have been ok. They turn up on time at least and some of them try to help my 85'year old mum by stripping wet beds in the morning, bagging dirty pads and slips, and taking clothes down to the washing machine. I know how hard it is to get the right people to do this important job, and we so appreciate the kind, good carers who do the job for the right reasons. But some of them don't deserve to be called 'carers' ...it's a contradiction in terms.
Last night my mum phoned me in a right state about one particular agency carer who has been there before and is absolutely terrible . They are all given half an hour to attend to dad, unless it is a bath day where he gets more time. Last night, the 'carer' came in, went up the stairs with dad, stripped him and dressed him in his pj 's in less than ten minutes. In that time, she could not possibly have washed him, or put his diprobase cream on, or helped him with his teeth cleaning etc. dad is doubly incontinent, and because of this, and sitting in damp pads, the carer is told to help him wash twice per day. Anyway, the woman then came downstairs alone, mum said, are you going to your next client now, and she said no, I have to wait for half an hour to phone in or I don't get paid. So mum said, where is my husband then, is he in bed? The carer said no, he is coming down now, and plonked herself on the settee and sat watching the telly! Mum went out to the the hall to find dad, confused and frail the poor old soul, standing at the top of the stairs, no slippers or dressing gown on, his pj's wrongly buttoned up, he was shaking and asking he if he could come down!! My mum is a little mouse and would not give the carer a mouthful, she didnt know what to do. If I had been there the madam would have got a slap! Mum had to go up, help dad into his slippers and gown and down the stairs and sit in her own home in an awkward silence, while this lazy bisom sat on their couch reading their paper for 20 minutes until she phoned in to say she was finished and going to her next client and left! There is more....leaving his clothes where she stripped him and just thrown in the doorway for him to possibly trip over, wet pad thrown in the bath etc...but it would take forever to list it all here....suffice to say i was horrified, and called the agency and the council this morning to say we never wanted that carer to attend to dad again, and have written a letter of complaint. Mum needs help, not a 'carer' who by her very presence brings grief and worry and upset. All the training in the world would never make this woman a 'carer '. I suppose there are always some bad apples, but there must be other people who are under the care of this woman, perhaps alone with no one else to look out or them, perhaps frightened or unsure to make a complaint, and she is whizzing through the job in ten mins and sitting on their couch watching telly and getting paid for it! It makes my blood boil!!
Sorry for typos and wrong spelling....this iPad is awful to type on!
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Carers are not to good
Some are lazy we had one who sat in the chair
One who went before she came
But you can get the odd one
One carer was booked for 20mins
And hour later still was still there for care
Some are lazy we had one who sat in the chair
One who went before she came
But you can get the odd one
One carer was booked for 20mins
And hour later still was still there for care
my mother has 4 visits a day from carers (LA) and they are wonderfull...she has a favourite one who has become a friend..and the others are very good...she likes to have a timesheet with who is coming and what time and gets v anxious if its late!!! we have had a few blips and some new girls have been v late or got lost as it is hard to find out in the sticks, but over all if I ring the agency with a worry or complaint they sort it..they arrived all over xmas and last year also managed to get to her driving up a steep country lane in the snow.....they are caring and kind and Ma is washed , food heated, hot chocolate made and commode emptied, any washing done..and if antibiotics needed they give regularly....I am called if anything needed or any worries , I do her food shop online and its delivered weekly, also anything else needed clothes etc etc....the women/girls are excellent and enable my mother to live happily in her cottage , I can only visit every couple of weeks as the tube/rail and then a cab journey London to Guildford is often difficult with my arthritis when my back is bad....but of course the phone line is hot with use every day!!!!!
my mother will ring me if a carer is v late or hasn't arrived at all..
I leave cash with ma but know what is there..... and there are no "valuables" as such around her home
I pay her neighbour direct for getting her her radio times, good excuse for her to chat with ma too
I pay all bills and gardener direct ...so her money cash at home is for her to feel she has it if needed and a bit of independence
I do keep my eye on the ball re carers and complain quick and loud to the supervisor if something not ok ....
I did arrive unexpectedly one morning and her favourite carer was due at dinnertime...she did not arrive and Ma told me she was at the drs...I said well in that case another carer will be coming...no one did and my mother didnt want the carer in trouble...
but I didn't want my mother taken advantage of..so I rang the office when I got home and asked where the fill in carer had got to as Lea was at the drs..quelle suprise she hadnt mentioned it...so I said as I was there I'd sorted dinner etc...(but marked her card!!!!)
my mother will ring me if a carer is v late or hasn't arrived at all..
I leave cash with ma but know what is there..... and there are no "valuables" as such around her home
I pay her neighbour direct for getting her her radio times, good excuse for her to chat with ma too
I pay all bills and gardener direct ...so her money cash at home is for her to feel she has it if needed and a bit of independence
I do keep my eye on the ball re carers and complain quick and loud to the supervisor if something not ok ....
I did arrive unexpectedly one morning and her favourite carer was due at dinnertime...she did not arrive and Ma told me she was at the drs...I said well in that case another carer will be coming...no one did and my mother didnt want the carer in trouble...
but I didn't want my mother taken advantage of..so I rang the office when I got home and asked where the fill in carer had got to as Lea was at the drs..quelle suprise she hadnt mentioned it...so I said as I was there I'd sorted dinner etc...(but marked her card!!!!)
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