DLA medical assessment

[Glosgall]

Hi, My friend has early onset Alzheimers and hs just been put into the ESA support group . She's now had a letter to say that a gp is going to her house this Wednesday to do a medical assessment re her DLA application . Is this common ? Can anyone tell us what we can expect to happen ? We are new to all this , and worried we'll say the wrong things.
My friend does tend to ''blag'' and hide her problems. She does have great problems with ''numbers'' ....... difficulty telling the time, using money etc . and she does have very bad night time hallucinations .
Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Sandra.

 

[jan.s]

We had a similar appointment a couple of years ago, when we had to attend a medical centre. Like you I was suspicious! At that point he didn't accept that there was a problem, so I had to be careful what I said. I did say to my husband before we went in not to be surprised if I said something he didn't agree with (I wanted to tell the true situation, that he found hard to accept).

The doctor asked some questions, which we answered honestly, but without the positive spin! They asked simple questions like what things do you find hard?

I was worried before we went, but they were very kind and understanding.

Hope this helps.
Jan

 

[Glosgall]

We had a similar appointment a couple of years ago, when we had to attend a medical centre. Like you I was suspicious! At that point he didn't accept that there was a problem, so I had to be careful what I said. I did say to my husband before we went in not to be surprised if I said something he didn't agree with (I wanted to tell the true situation, that he found hard to accept).

The doctor asked some questions, which we answered honestly, but without the positive spin! They asked simple questions like what things do you find hard?

I was worried before we went, but they were very kind and understanding.

Hope this helps.
Jan

Hi Jan, I think the problem is that , like you found, she doesn't think that she's having as many problems as other people see and are aware of . She's was a very clever person, in the legal profession , so is very good at hiding things from others . Not what we want at this assessment ! She's still in denial, somewhat .
We have got a local representative from the Alz. society( who helped us fill in the DLA forms ) hoping to come along as well . We've heard so many negative reports of these medical assessments and we're worried we'll say the wrong things .

Sandra.

 

[jan.s]

You sound well prepared. I think they just do spot checks on applications, not that they think you are being dishonest.

With my husband, they asked how we got there, so i made a point of saying how OH didn't drive anymore, also how he needed me to get him to the right building.

I am sure they can tell when someone is claiming falsely, as in a case i know!! I think denial is an obligatory sympom of dementia, so they must be used to it. Maybe when your friend answers a question, you could qualify her answer, by saying something like ..."yes, that's right, but you didn't find that easy."

Good luck.
Jan x
Let us know how it goes.

 

[Glosgall]

You sound well prepared. I think they just do spot checks on applications, not that they think you are being dishonest.

With my husband, they asked how we got there, so i made a point of saying how OH didn't drive anymore, also how he needed me to get him to the right building.

I am sure they can tell when someone is claiming falsely, as in a case i know!! I think denial is an obligatory sympom of dementia, so they must be used to it. Maybe when your friend answers a question, you could qualify her answer, by saying something like ..."yes, that's right, but you didn't find that easy."

Good luck.
Jan x
Let us know how it goes.

Thanks Jan , will do !

Sandra.

 

[Glosgall]

Thanks Jan , will do !

Sandra.

Hi Jan, We got through the DWP medical assessment yesterday ok, I think . The gp , we felt, didn't like myself and the Alzheimers society welfare person sitting in , but, it was a home visit, and there was no way my friend would have coped on her own .
The gp didn't ask as many questions as we thought she might , but, we did say that y friend has big problems with ''numbers'' and she also has ''hallucinations at night , so maybe that was what she focused on . Chris wasn't able to say the days of the week from Sunday backwards ...... struggling to even get to Saturday . She also wasn't able to count backwards from 30..... not even one number . Her hallucinations were so numerous and graphic that the gp , I think , had made up her mind half way through the meeting what her decision was likely to be . So, we're now in a ''waiting'' position to hear the results . These things are so very stressful and upsetting , we hope she's not called on again for a further assessment .
Will let you know what's what when we get the results .

Thanks again for your advice .
Sandra.

 

[jan.s]

Hi Sandra

so glad it went OK. It is nerve racking, almost like you're trying to claim for something you're not entitled to, but, you had nothing to hide. I used this attitude, and it was OK.

I will look forward to hearing the outcome, but I'm sure you'll be OK.

Jan x

 

[AlsoConfused]

I'm glad things went OK too but your friend is lucky to have the support she had.

There are an incredible number of people with major health problems (sometimes ones that cause them to drop dead a few weeks after they've been found fit to work by the tool) who've been forced back onto the much stingier Job Seekers Allowance when there's no way they could work at any job.

 

[creativesarah]

I agree
I scored 0 on the medical (you need 15 points) then had to go a tribunal and scored well over the 15
infact the judge said he'd seen and heard enough before we had got to the end
I got the care component but got turned down for DLA
I hope your friend gets the dla its exhausting sitting through these things and demoralising too - I found it made me more aware of what I had lost

 

[Glosgall]

Hi Sandra

so glad it went OK. It is nerve racking, almost like you're trying to claim for something you're not entitled to, but, you had nothing to hide. I used this attitude, and it was OK.

I will look forward to hearing the outcome, but I'm sure you'll be OK.

Jan x

I must admit, I didn't realise that the gp's doing these assessments don't have prior access to the DLA forms sent in . They just have a bit of basic info.
To some extent that helped as we were able, somewhat, to concentrate on the specific problem which Chris has without going through all the less important issues and steer the questions being asked .

Not sure how long we'll need to wait for the results, but, Chris said yesterday ''they'd rung her and said they'd asked her if she'd got the results yet as they were going to put the money into her account'' ??????? So, no idea quite what that phone call was about or who it was in fact from , so will await a letter !

Will let you know the results.

Cheers ,
Sandra.

 

[jan.s]

sounds good to me!

Jan x

 

[Glosgall]

I'm glad things went OK too but your friend is lucky to have the support she had.

There are an incredible number of people with major health problems (sometimes ones that cause them to drop dead a few weeks after they've been found fit to work by the tool) who've been forced back onto the much stingier Job Seekers Allowance when there's no way they could work at any job.

Tell me about it ! I've got friends who have MS , and , like myself, MD , and several people have had benefits withdrawn . It's crazy and so very unfair . This was one reason why I was so concerned about the assessment on Wednesday .

Best wishes,
Sandra.

 

[Glosgall]

I agree
I scored 0 on the medical (you need 15 points) then had to go a tribunal and scored well over the 15
infact the judge said he'd seen and heard enough before we had got to the end
I got the care component but got turned down for DLA
I hope your friend gets the dla its exhausting sitting through these things and demoralising too - I found it made me more aware of what I had lost

I think she's bound to get some part of DLA , just not sure how much !
It would be helpful to be able to get her a Blue Badge, but, it seems like that can be a postcode lottery going by on line comments as to how the local county offices's interpretation the new guidelines . That's a thing to try to sort out another time .

Thnaks,
Sandra.

 

[Nebiroth]

The awfulk thing is that DLA is being phased out from 2013 onwards. During 2013-2016 anyone granted DLA will have to apply for it's replacement, Personal Independence Payment. Even if you were granted an indefinite DLA. The DWP will write and 'invite' you to apply for the new benefit.

PIP, like DLA, is tax-free and not means tested. But the big difference is getting it - every single applicant will face the medical - the criteria for these will be tougher and there are no conditions that will automatically grant you PIP (unless you're temrinally ill with six months or less to live)

They say

"There's no automatic entitlement to Personal Independence Payment. Entitlement is based on your personal circumstances and the impact that your condition or disability has on your ability to live independently. Entitlement will not depend on what health condition or disability you have.

The DWP have already budgetted for a 20% reduction is DLA payments. In other words, they expect 20% of existing recipients to 'fail' the medical or to simply not apply for PIP

These changes don't affect anyone under 16 or over 65 receiving DLA and nor do they affect Attendance Allowance

 

[Glosgall]

The awfulk thing is that DLA is being phased out from 2013 onwards. During 2013-2016 anyone granted DLA will have to apply for it's replacement, Personal Independence Payment. Even if you were granted an indefinite DLA. The DWP will write and 'invite' you to apply for the new benefit.

PIP, like DLA, is tax-free and not means tested. But the big difference is getting it - every single applicant will face the medical - the criteria for these will be tougher and there are no conditions that will automatically grant you PIP (unless you're temrinally ill with six months or less to live)

They say

"There's no automatic entitlement to Personal Independence Payment. Entitlement is based on your personal circumstances and the impact that your condition or disability has on your ability to live independently. Entitlement will not depend on what health condition or disability you have.

The DWP have already budgetted for a 20% reduction is DLA payments. In other words, they expect 20% of existing recipients to 'fail' the medical or to simply not apply for PIP

These changes don't affect anyone under 16 or over 65 receiving DLA and nor do they affect Attendance Allowance

I agree, it'll be another worrying time for all those who already get DLA. We can all do without the added stress and uncertainty and goal posts are being moved so that eligibility will be even more difficult .
I personally think it's good to get the help of forums, like this, and , wherever possible, a representative from , in our case, the Alz . society . From personal experience if you don't get the right advice an awful lot of precious time and energy can be wasted going down avenues which aren't needed and missing the all important issues which are of the utmost importance . eg Filling in benefit forms . I'm sure a lot of people/families are missing out on benefits they are really entitled to but aren't answering the questions in the correct way .
Worrying times all round , but, all we can do in the meantime is do what you can on a daily basis and try and laugh about problems where possible , and not look too far ahead . I lost my mum to Alzheimers last year , and we took each day at a time .

Best wishes to all,
Sandra.

 

[Glosgall]

DLA Award

Well, we've just had my friends DLA award, and she's got lowest mobility, as expected, , but also lowest rate Care . We were expecting at least middle rate, if not highest rate . She has dreadful hallucinations at night , and need someone there . It seems daft that not being able to cook a meal rates higher than being terrified of vivid hallucinations ?!! She also can't handle money or understand things like time,etc because of her inability to understand ''numbers'' ....... which effects her greatly . She's also started to get disorientated , and gets very confused over very simple instructions etc . Should we appeal ? Everything is so stressful .

Sandra.

I agree, it'll be another worrying time for all those who already get DLA. We can all do without the added stress and uncertainty and goal posts are being moved so that eligibility will be even more difficult .
I personally think it's good to get the help of forums, like this, and , wherever possible, a representative from , in our case, the Alz . society . From personal experience if you don't get the right advice an awful lot of precious time and energy can be wasted going down avenues which aren't needed and missing the all important issues which are of the utmost importance . eg Filling in benefit forms . I'm sure a lot of people/families are missing out on benefits they are really entitled to but aren't answering the questions in the correct way .
Worrying times all round , but, all we can do in the meantime is do what you can on a daily basis and try and laugh about problems where possible , and not look too far ahead . I lost my mum to Alzheimers last year , and we took each day at a time .

Best wishes to all,
Sandra.[/QUOTE]

 

[jan.s]

Hi

I am sorry to hear that you didn't get what you had hoped for - DWP seem to have their own criteria which don't follow logic!

If it were me, I would leave the award for a short time and then reapply. They will look at the new evidence and make a further decision. I seem to remember that we were only awarded the lowest rate for care when we were assessed, but over time, as OH's condition deteriorated, I reapplied and was granted higher rates. Sadly this takes up your time as the booklet is loooong, but it is worth it in the long run.

Good luck.
Jan

 

[Ellie315]

Hi Glosgall,

Where are you based? I volunteer in advocacy, and I help people who have been refused, denied, or restricted to the benefits they need and are entitled to. I have seen many issues with the Atos medical assessments. You can appeal, and if you wish to, I would be happy to advise. If you happen to be based in South Wales, I or a colleague could represent you, or, if you want to PM me and tell me where you are, I could try to find an advocacy service near you.

You could wait a while and reapply, but if you appeal and win, the benefits will be dated from the original decision.

Finally, don't wait too long as I think you have to to it within a certain amount of time - a month or near enough - if you do want to request a reconsideration / appeal.

You can find more information (though not much!) and the number to phone to get the appeal form here: http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/MoneyTa...rSupport/BeginnersGuideToBenefits/DG_10013949

 

[jeany123]

I asked Age Uk for help with our forms, a lady came to our house and she put exactly the truth on them, she said it is the way that it is written that matters ,it might be a good idea to ask Age UK , Alzheimers Ass or the CAB to help fill in the forms ,


Jeany x

 

[Glosgall]

I asked Age Uk for help with our forms, a lady came to our house and she put exactly the truth on them, she said it is the way that it is written that matters ,it might be a good idea to ask Age UK , Alzheimers Ass or the CAB to help fill in the forms ,


Jeany x

We had an Alzheimers rep. with us on the day !! She thought Chris would get highest rate care . Will see what she says on Monday when she's back at work .

Sandra.