help needed please?

[Maldives13]

Hi everyone. Please hope someone can help me as i am pretty desperate. i had a phone call this afternoon from social services to say that my Mums care agency can no longer support my Mums care package (30 mins in the morning and 2x15mins tea time and evening). They have a serious shortage of staff and so can no longer help!! Ok - social services are struggling to find anyone to take over. They have eventually agreed to up the other 2 visits to 30 mins each! My Mum has alzheimers and is declining quite rapidly over the last few weeks. Still lives at home with our support on a daily basis.
They are saying that their service will end on fri and the only thing social services has offered is a 7.00am visit (we have a job to get my mother up by 7.30am never mind any earlier). We dont live with her and she gets really really spooked if anyone lets themselves into her house. They may be able to cover the tea time call and possibly the evening call.
Im so distressed that we will be going from one agency who cant provide consistent cover to another agency who are the same. Dont these people realise the big thing foe dementia is consistency. Im terrified of telling my Mum about this change as she gets so confused and anxious and it is making me ill. I know i wont sleep again tonight and i will probably have to go and spend the weekend with her because again she has new carers coming in.
Please if anyone can help Id be so grateful.
Thanks for reading

 

[CollegeGirl]

This is not a short term solution, but you could ask for Direct Payments (assuming you're in England?) and then employ an agency of your own choice using the money you're allocated for your mum, rather than using an agency supplied by social services which seem to always be using different staff and who don't seem to be able to keep to a reasonably consistent timetable.

This has worked well for us because dad chose a small independent agency which is willing to send the same people for most of the time, holidays and sickness excepted, and who are far more punctual, flexible and reliable.

I'm not too sure what to suggest for the moment, though - hopefully someone else will be along with ideas shortly.

 

[Kevinl]

Dont these people realise the big thing foe dementia is consistency.

It's been discussed on here before Councils outsource the care to companies some of whom employ their workers on very poor terms (he said politely) and so struggle to recruit and retain staff, as long as the council can say they provided the cover then the quality and consistency don't seem to matter. As suggested you may be better off getting the payments direct and looking for a local agency, if you give a rough area people may be able to recommend agencies local to your Mum and give some idea of costs.
K

 

[BLONDY]

Hi everyone. Please hope someone can help me as i am pretty desperate. i had a phone call this afternoon from social services to say that my Mums care agency can no longer support my Mums care package (30 mins in the morning and 2x15mins tea time and evening). They have a serious shortage of staff and so can no longer help!! Ok - social services are struggling to find anyone to take over. They have eventually agreed to up the other 2 visits to 30 mins each! My Mum has alzheimers and is declining quite rapidly over the last few weeks. Still lives at home with our support on a daily basis.
They are saying that their service will end on fri and the only thing social services has offered is a 7.00am visit (we have a job to get my mother up by 7.30am never mind any earlier). We dont live with her and she gets really really spooked if anyone lets themselves into her house. They may be able to cover the tea time call and possibly the evening call.
Im so distressed that we will be going from one agency who cant provide consistent cover to another agency who are the same. Dont these people realise the big thing foe dementia is consistency. Im terrified of telling my Mum about this change as she gets so confused and anxious and it is making me ill. I know i wont sleep again tonight and i will probably have to go and spend the weekend with her because again she has new carers coming in.
Please if anyone can help Id be so grateful.
Thanks for reading

A letter to your local newspaper exposing the virtues of care in 2014 may help. Ask social services to supply respite care for the interim until they are able to reinstate the carers a gentle word implying that any danger to your Mum or others due to their inability to supply care would ensue with you suing them will go down really well.
Kind Regards
Blondy

 

[Maldives13]

Thank you for all your feedback. The social worker is visiting today and has agreed to increase Mums visits to 3 x 30mins each which is something! She has found an agency to take over from tomorrow and says we will have the same carer 3 x a day for 6 days of the week! Phew! Lets hope this works as that is what the last agency said.
I am going to get some info re direct payments and already have made contact with a lovely lady who could help out with a small portion of the care!
i live in Fareham/Gosport in Hampshire so any recommendations gratefully recieved.

Thanks also for the advice about respite Kevini as all i could come up with was me taking over in the interim so thank you.