My mum started going out during the cold night in unsuitable clothing, including one memorable incident when she was wearing nothing more than an unfastened dressing gown
At this point I knew she needed a care home, but it didnt happen until, soon after, she ended up in hospital with a TIA and went from there to a care home.
While she was in hospital she was found to be malnourished and dehydrated and when I checked her home I found unpaid bills posted between the towels in the airing cupboard, no fresh food in the house and it was obvious that she was no longer doing any sort of housework. She was no longer able to be independent, however much she insisted that she was doing all her own shopping, cooking and housework.
Once she had settled, though, and no longer had to worry about trying (and failing) to run a home, could relax into the simple routine of the care home where there were no expectations, she actually thrived. Regular meals and medication and constant contact with other people improved her tremendously - at her home she was on her own and had stopped allowing people in , so she didnt see anyone during the day unless she went out. At home she was declining so rapidly that I feared she would not live the year out, but in her care home she lived for another 3 years. I know that the pandemic is causing so many problems with visiting, but there is such an outcry that Im sure that there will soon be a resolution and it wont last forever anyway.