Result of Assessment on Monday

RussellC

Registered User
Jul 6, 2006
47
0
My father has been undergoing an assessment at the hospital for 8 weeks.

In that time he has unfortunately declined. He has become more aggressive. Two days ago he threw things at a nurse and another patient (No one hurt). His medication has been increased. He also may have become faecially incontinent. Not sure because I think having a stomach upset earlier in the week may have unsettled him. We have also, unfortunately, not been able to visit him for a few days

We have an assessment meeting on Monday. I am not too sure what to expect but I am fearful that he will be suitable only for the most secure home (as he also wanders), . I rang the AS helpline and they sent a list of homes. There seem to be very few homes suitable to deal with his problems, though I havent asked them until we get the formal assessment..

We will have to accept that we will have to travel some distance to a home (though my mother is too frail to undertake the journey too often), but my fear is that few homes will take him.

Has anyone been through a similar experience? We would be grateful for any advice in this move onto the next stage in the process.

Thanks

Russell
 

Kathleen

Registered User
Mar 12, 2005
639
0
69
West Sussex
RussellC said:
I am not too sure what to expect but I am fearful that he will be suitable only for the most secure home (as he also wanders)

I understand your fear, I had that same dread when the words "secure home" were first mentioned, I thought of cold floors and a lonely, unwelcoming place, I was so wrong.

Mum is in a secure home as she, too, was a wanderer, it is a large house that has security locks on all the doors and windows, but is has a cosy feel to it, not what we expected at all. They have residents who are doubly incontinent and some can be aggressive at times too, the staff make a home what it is and the staff we have got to know are absolutely fantastic to them all.

It is 20 minutes drive away, but we live on the south coast and there are a huge amount of nursing and care homes around. It must be so tough for you if you face a long journey to visit your father, but the most important thing is for him to be in the right environment for his needs.

The very best of luck with mondays assessment and I really hope all goes well for you all.

Kathleen
 

Lynne

Registered User
Jun 3, 2005
3,433
0
Suffolk,England
Hi Russell

Just want to add my best wishes for Monday and the forthcoming assessment meeting. Don't be afraid to ask questions; I think I would be asking if the change of medication could be responsible for temporary incontinence, and try to find out if they will be taking him out of pads if he recovers his bowel control. I think sometimes patients are routinely padded up, as it makes less work for the staff, but it tends to speed up the decline of continence control.

It might also (theorising here) be adding to his intractability? If someone was trying to make ME wear nappies when I didn't need them, I think I would definitely be unhappy about it, :mad: and let the nurses know!

Kathleen: Thank you for defusing some of the nightmares we create for ourselves. It's all too easy to remember only the bad reports.
 

RussellC

Registered User
Jul 6, 2006
47
0
Monday's Assessment

Thanks for your replies and advice.

There was a discussion about Dad's aggression, last night he pulled over the drugs trolley. The doctors will be trying him on other medication and seeing if there is any reason for the aggression. They hope it will stabilise and he can be kept in he unit. He was put in normal pants today.

They will be consulting another specialist unit and Dad might have to go there for assessment. Worryingly they have asked our view on whether he should be detained under the Mental Health Act, an administrative device which would allow the administration of drugs without his consent (he is voluntary at the moment). My view is that because of the aggression over the eight week period this is something they would do anyway as he is a potential danger to himself and others. He won't be coming home. We will be at the assessment tomorrow to support Dad.

A bad day and a defining day in the illness. I never dreamt it would happen like this. I just hope that at the end of the day Dad ends up in a suitable home or hospital. I will be visiting him every day to help give him some quality of life and to let him know he is still very much loved. At the end of January I will be leaving work (redundancy happening at the right time) to support my mum. She is nearly
78, has her own health problems and is worn out by 6 years of care for my Dad. She is also distraught at what is happening.

It has been said many times but what an awful disease AD is.

Thanks for listening

Russell
 

Forum statistics

Threads
138,144
Messages
1,993,348
Members
89,800
Latest member
suehart