My 83 yrs old undiagnosed husband answered the call and passed me on. The police reported him to the social services as he was picked two weeks ago at 6am by patrol. At the same time they picked him up I reported him missing. He has no recollection of the incidence, short term memory very poor. When do social services get involved? At the moment he is highly functional with activities of daily living and his usual household chores like washing up, putting rubbish ready for collection etc. At night he gets very anxious about home security and confused. I told her he is on waiting list for memory clinic and there is a 9 months waiting list and whether she could help to speed it up, she said no. Am going to speak to gp to give a mild sedative at night, he is also getting confused between day and night although I have got two dementia clocks, I remind him to check. Social services said she will write me with all the details in case I need support later on. All I need now for him to be seen quicker in the memory clinic, sedation as required and a ct scan. Can I ask GP for a ct scan or does it need to be requested by memory clinic? It’s so hard as he is not aware of his memory issues and his behaviour at night. I do not want to make a big issue out of it as he will refuse to attend any appointment. The word dementia freaks him up. Do not know how to handle the situation. He can get verbally aggressive and threatening if I say the wrong word. Thanks for reading.
Call from social services
- Thread starter Jan48
- Start date
Hello @Jan48 , have you tried contacting the Admiral Nurses. This evening activity or sundowning is very common with dementia and even though he is waiting on the memory clinic appointment I think they will still be able to advise you.
www.dementiauk.org
What is an Admiral Nurse and how can they help?
Dementia UK is a charity that provides Admiral Nurses for families affected by dementia. Call our Dementia Helpline to find out how we can support you.
www.dementiauk.org
My mother 'got lost' one afternoon on her own high street, where she had lived for 50 years. She went into a shop and they called an ambulance, and a paramedic called me (I lived a long distance away). They kindly took her back home. A week or two later Social Services called me to check things were okay, it was just a box ticking exercise.
I agree they are unlikely to offer sedation. When my mother was once very agitated I asked if she could be given a light sedative and the answer was no, for the reason Jessbow says.
In terms of avoiding your husband wandering, you could consider locking the doors at night and keeping the keys somewhere he won't find them.
I'm sorry to hear you have to wait so long for the memory clinic. They will organise the scan after they have assessed him.
I agree they are unlikely to offer sedation. When my mother was once very agitated I asked if she could be given a light sedative and the answer was no, for the reason Jessbow says.
In terms of avoiding your husband wandering, you could consider locking the doors at night and keeping the keys somewhere he won't find them.
I'm sorry to hear you have to wait so long for the memory clinic. They will organise the scan after they have assessed him.
Do not need any support now as he his highly functional but was hoping with a diagnosis he might get some medication that can slow it down or is there no such medication. Spoke to admiral nurse, she suggested to check for infections it could be delirium getting day and night mixed up. It could also be his dementia us getting worse, my mind is working over time
Depending on the type of dementia, there re some medications but whether they slow things down or not is open to interpretation. There is Donepezil for Alzheimer’s, my mum was in this and maybe it gave her a bit longer being independent. For other dementias there are no current meds to slow the progression just manage it. All of these have to come from the memory clinic initially.
