Hi all,
Just catching up with threads after a weeks holiday in Wales with my boyfriend & kids. I'm semi refreshed after the break, but the kids just wouldn't stop acting up, so could use another to wind down further!
Just wanted to post an update on Gran. It's been a few weeks since we had any activity, but now things are happening on a fairly swift basis.
We now have carers bathing Gran two or three times a week which takes the strain off mam a lot. Its very helpful. We also have a 'befriender' going on a monday for a couple of hours to keep Gran company for a bit.
Thanks to the befriender, we were alerted to the smell of gas behind Gran's chair on my first day away. Mam went up, called an engineer, and it was discovered that the cooker had been tampered with and was subsequently isolated. He provided a hot plate for her instead, tho she will be unlikely to need it as her meals are ready prepared and warmed in the microwave.
Then the two following days of my holiday were punctuated by Gran going walkabout again, twice in three days, around about the 8pm region. Thankfully the alarm system has worked on both occasions, but mam was alarmed to discover two bus tickets in Gran's handbag, for the same day, outward and inward bound. They go back to another time of Gran going walkies, but we were rather alarmed to note that the time on each of the tickets covered the time she had gone missing & couldn't be found? Do we assume that she got on the bus and then came back? How did she know where it would go? How did she know which stop to go to to get home again? Or did she just pick them up off the floor as my sister has suggested? The mind boggles.
Anyway, the last two episodes have prompted Gran's social worker to tell mam that she is going to push for 24/7 care now. She is going to put Gran's case before the panel, in a weeks time I believe, (it was 2 weeks when I got the message) and see what they have to say.
Lord alone knows how we approach Gran with all this info. I've suggested to mam that she leave it to the professionals to talk to Gran about it, and that way she is less likely to be seen as the instigator of something Gran doesn't want to do? Or should mam tell her herself? Gran does trust mam to the most degree, she does appreciate what mam does to help her, maybe she'll feel let down if she hears the news from someone other than mam? I just don't know what the best thing is with it, but I guess we have time to work out what to do.
But I am sooooooooo relieved that things are heading in the right direction now. There had been talk of Gran going to an intermediate centre for assessment, but this has been cancelled and full time care is the goal.
Fingers crossed that we get some good help from them and get to keep Gran safe and near to us at last. The area she goes remains to be seen of course, but I'm hoping that they'll consider mam's wishes when they decide where we can look for homes.
Gill
xx
Just catching up with threads after a weeks holiday in Wales with my boyfriend & kids. I'm semi refreshed after the break, but the kids just wouldn't stop acting up, so could use another to wind down further!
Just wanted to post an update on Gran. It's been a few weeks since we had any activity, but now things are happening on a fairly swift basis.
We now have carers bathing Gran two or three times a week which takes the strain off mam a lot. Its very helpful. We also have a 'befriender' going on a monday for a couple of hours to keep Gran company for a bit.
Thanks to the befriender, we were alerted to the smell of gas behind Gran's chair on my first day away. Mam went up, called an engineer, and it was discovered that the cooker had been tampered with and was subsequently isolated. He provided a hot plate for her instead, tho she will be unlikely to need it as her meals are ready prepared and warmed in the microwave.
Then the two following days of my holiday were punctuated by Gran going walkabout again, twice in three days, around about the 8pm region. Thankfully the alarm system has worked on both occasions, but mam was alarmed to discover two bus tickets in Gran's handbag, for the same day, outward and inward bound. They go back to another time of Gran going walkies, but we were rather alarmed to note that the time on each of the tickets covered the time she had gone missing & couldn't be found? Do we assume that she got on the bus and then came back? How did she know where it would go? How did she know which stop to go to to get home again? Or did she just pick them up off the floor as my sister has suggested? The mind boggles.
Anyway, the last two episodes have prompted Gran's social worker to tell mam that she is going to push for 24/7 care now. She is going to put Gran's case before the panel, in a weeks time I believe, (it was 2 weeks when I got the message) and see what they have to say.
Lord alone knows how we approach Gran with all this info. I've suggested to mam that she leave it to the professionals to talk to Gran about it, and that way she is less likely to be seen as the instigator of something Gran doesn't want to do? Or should mam tell her herself? Gran does trust mam to the most degree, she does appreciate what mam does to help her, maybe she'll feel let down if she hears the news from someone other than mam? I just don't know what the best thing is with it, but I guess we have time to work out what to do.
But I am sooooooooo relieved that things are heading in the right direction now. There had been talk of Gran going to an intermediate centre for assessment, but this has been cancelled and full time care is the goal.
Fingers crossed that we get some good help from them and get to keep Gran safe and near to us at last. The area she goes remains to be seen of course, but I'm hoping that they'll consider mam's wishes when they decide where we can look for homes.
Gill
xx
