Nursing home madness!

[Grandaughter 1]

For those of you that don't know my Grandad is in a nursing home for 6 weeks respite. He was in the middle of being assessed to see whether he could stay there permanently or whether he would have to be moved to a care home instead.

Well on Wednesday, Grandad "got out" of the home and no-one noticed!!! Apparantly someone on the street saw him standing in the garden and went and told the staff - thank god!

This caused a right stir amongst the management and they then called the SW to say that he coudln't possibly stay with them if he is mobile enough to escape!!!!! Never mind the fact that they weren't watching him properly.

Anyway, the next day he was moved to a care home. My Nan said that he seems to be OK about the move and as it happens the new home is closer to Nan and Grandad's house so visiting will be easier. He is still in a respite bed though so we don't know whether he'll have to be moved again on 23 Feb.

I just don't know what to think. He got moved so quickly Nan didn't even get a chance to speak/complain to the staff at the old home. Nan seems to want to just forget about it but I'm not impressed with the fact Grandad was wandering and no-one even knew!!

 

[noelphobic]

For those of you that don't know my Grandad is in a nursing home for 6 weeks respite. He was in the middle of being assessed to see whether he could stay there permanently or whether he would have to be moved to a care home instead.

Well on Wednesday, Grandad "got out" of the home and no-one noticed!!! Apparantly someone on the street saw him standing in the garden and went and told the staff - thank god!

This caused a right stir amongst the management and they then called the SW to say that he coudln't possibly stay with them if he is mobile enough to escape!!!!! Never mind the fact that they weren't watching him properly.

Anyway, the next day he was moved to a care home. My Nan said that he seems to be OK about the move and as it happens the new home is closer to Nan and Grandad's house so visiting will be easier. He is still in a respite bed though so we don't know whether he'll have to be moved again on 23 Feb.

I just don't know what to think. He got moved so quickly Nan didn't even get a chance to speak/complain to the staff at the old home. Nan seems to want to just forget about it but I'm not impressed with the fact Grandad was wandering and no-one even knew!!

Was your grandad in an EMI home or a general nursing home? If it was an EMI home then they should have been alert to this possibility. If it was a general nursing home then maybe not.

This is obviously very worrying but at least you know that this place is obviously not sutable for him and the best time to find this out is when he is in respite, not when it is a permanent placement.

If you believe that the staff in the first home were negligent you can pursue a complaint either directly with the home or through CSCI. Before going that far you may wish to consider discussing the matter informally with the home. At worst they may have learnt something from this experience and either tighten up their procedures or decide against admitting EMI patients in future. Obviously if they are registered for EMI patients then the latter is not an option.

I do think that, to some extent, nursing homes are ill equipped to cope with residents who are mobile and also suffering from dementia. Most of the residents in my mum's NH are wheelchair bound so it is not a huge issue.

How is your grandad getting on in the new home? If it is more suited to his needs and is able to keep him on long term then this could prove to be a blessing in disguise, albeit a very traumatic one!

Brenda

 

[Grandaughter 1]

Thanks Brenda

I don't think my Nan want's to pursue the matter although I personally would like some questions answered at the very least.

Grandad was in a general nursing home. He was put in there as he had a fall and had a nasty gash to his head so was having 6 weeks respite to recuperate.

Grandad does seem to have accepted the move although it's only been less than a day. In some ways it is a blessing because the main worry was disrupting him as he had settled at the nursing home, however there were aspects that concerned Nan. Small things like the fact that Grandad was always given his cup of tea in a beaker when he was quite capable of drinking from a cup. Also Grandad kept saying he didn't like the manager.

I just don't see why they moved him just cos he "escaped". The new care home isn't secure so we just hope and pray Grandad doesn't wander again or will the staff at the care home be more vigilant than the nursing home staff??

 

[noelphobic]

Thanks Brenda

I don't think my Nan want's to pursue the matter although I personally would like some questions answered at the very least.

Grandad was in a general nursing home. He was put in there as he had a fall and had a nasty gash to his head so was having 6 weeks respite to recuperate.

Grandad does seem to have accepted the move although it's only been less than a day. In some ways it is a blessing because the main worry was disrupting him as he had settled at the nursing home, however there were aspects that concerned Nan. Small things like the fact that Grandad was always given his cup of tea in a beaker when he was quite capable of drinking from a cup. Also Grandad kept saying he didn't like the manager.

I just don't see why they moved him just cos he "escaped". The new care home isn't secure so we just hope and pray Grandad doesn't wander again or will the staff at the care home be more vigilant than the nursing home staff??

I can understand your Nan not wanting to take things further, but there is nothing to stop you asking some questions informally. There is nothing to stop you phoning the home and either asking questions on the phone or making an appointment to see someone.

I can understand your worries about your Grandad now drinking out of a beaker. It is always a big worry, when someone goes into a home, that they may become more dependent than they would otherwise be. However, given that he is having respite care then all options are still open. If it comes to the point where permanent care is being considered then you can raise this issue with them. It is probably a good idea to write any worries down as they come to mind. If you then get to the point where it is being decided whether your Grandad should stay where he is then you can ask these questions.

 

[Charlyparly]

Hi Granddaughter,

Firstly, I suspect that your Granddad has put the wind up the the homes' manager and they did not want to have to find themselves in a similar position again.

For reasons of general safety & security, they should have a system in place which alerts them to anyone leaving (or entering) the building unnoticed. I think it is incredibly alarming that they chose to have your Granddad transferred to another home based on the one incident.

You should raise your concerns with CSCI - not to have the home strung up and the staff lynched and set fire to - but to alert them to the fact that this has happened. The homes' manager should have already alerted CSCI. It is a requirement to notify them of any incident of this kind, and they should have taken action to prevent a reoccurrence.

How are things going at the new home?

Have you spoken with the care home yet regarding his drinks being given to him in a beaker?

I'm also curious to know whether your Granddad has taken to wandering / tyring to leave the building at his new home.


Charlyparly

 

[noelphobic]

Hi Charlyparly

the font size was very small on your post and I found it hard to read. I am assuming others would have had the same problems so have changed it back to a 'normal' size. I hope that is OK.

Brenda

 

[Grandaughter 1]

Hi Granddaughter,

Firstly, I suspect that your Granddad has put the wind up the the homes' manager and they did not want to have to find themselves in a similar position again.

For reasons of general safety & security, they should have a system in place which alerts them to anyone leaving (or entering) the building unnoticed. I think it is incredibly alarming that they chose to have your Granddad transferred to another home based on the one incident.

You should raise your concerns with CSCI - not to have the home strung up and the staff lynched and set fire to - but to alert them to the fact that this has happened. The homes' manager should have already alerted CSCI. It is a requirement to notify them of any incident of this kind, and they should have taken action to prevent a reoccurrence.

How are things going at the new home?

Have you spoken with the care home yet regarding his drinks being given to him in a beaker?

I'm also curious to know whether your Granddad has taken to wandering / tyring to leave the building at his new home.


Charlyparly

Excuse my ignorance but what does CSCI stand for? It's funny that you said "I suspect that your Granddad has put the wind up the the homes' manager" as that's exactly the comment my Mum said! I would have thought that they should have some sort of alarm on the front door to alert the staff. I think the staff were shocked that one of their residents could actually walk out of the building as most of the residents were very frail and couldn't get out of their chairs. I think they used the excuse that as this was a nursing home that he didn't need the extra nursing care they offered.

Grandad seems to be settling OK. Nan is visiting again on Tuesday so we will know more then. My Nan seems to like the new care home though as she was made to feel very welcome when she went in, and, they gave Grandad a cup of tea in a cup NOT a beaker (hurray!) Hopefully we won't have any more wandering issues, although he was prone to doing it when he was at home unfortunately.

 

[noelphobic]

Excuse my ignorance but what does CSCI stand for? It's funny that you said "I suspect that your Granddad has put the wind up the the homes' manager" as that's exactly the comment my Mum said! I would have thought that they should have some sort of alarm on the front door to alert the staff. I think the staff were shocked that one of their residents could actually walk out of the building as most of the residents were very frail and couldn't get out of their chairs. I think they used the excuse that as this was a nursing home that he didn't need the extra nursing care they offered.

Grandad seems to be settling OK. Nan is visiting again on Tuesday so we will know more then. My Nan seems to like the new care home though as she was made to feel very welcome when she went in, and, they gave Grandad a cup of tea in a cup NOT a beaker (hurray!) Hopefully we won't have any more wandering issues, although he was prone to doing it when he was at home unfortunately.

CSCI = Commission for Social Care Inspection. It's their job to inspect residential homes regularly and produce reports. They also investigate complaints made to them. I have had some dealings with them and wasn't over impressed, but that doesn't mean everyone will have the same experience. They have offices around the country. Their website is always worth a look if you are looking for a care home as all the reports are on there. I've spent many a happy (not!) hour reading them myself!

It does sound as though the new home may be more suitable and I hope it works out OK.

http://www.csci.org.uk/

Brenda