Suitability for Residential care/ Nursing care

Jann

Registered User
May 24, 2006
39
0
tingewick, bucks.
I'd very much appreciate if any of you could give me some advice with this.

SW is trying to organise a week's respite for Dad in the next week or so. SW is visiting him and Mum to assess her "suitability" in whether to place Mum in residential care (which was the original plan) or whether she may have to go into nursing care.

She recently had a brain haemmorhage but has now regained her mobility, speech and is able to feed herself. She is continent during the day but has some incontinence and thus wears incontinence pads at night.

They live in the Isle of Man and I believe the system differs from that in the UK.

We were hoping she could go into residential care rather than nursing care, especially as we know someone in the local residential care home and it is a wonderfully caring place. There is also the difference in cost I believe, though of course, this isn't such an important issue but we as yet, haven't vetted any of the nursing homes available.

In what condition does an AD sufferer have to have to define their 'suitability' for each?

Thanks in advance.
Jan
 

Jann

Registered User
May 24, 2006
39
0
tingewick, bucks.
I forgot to mention Mum also has a visit morning and evening, five days a week to bath/wash and dress/get her ready for bed.

Thanks Jan
 

Jann

Registered User
May 24, 2006
39
0
tingewick, bucks.
Thanks for this, Nada. I will forward on to my Dad.

I wonder if anyone else has any personal experience themselves and whether they think Mum should be going to residential or nursing care.
 

noelphobic

Registered User
Feb 24, 2006
3,452
0
Liverpool
Jann said:
I wonder if anyone else has any personal experience themselves and whether they think Mum should be going to residential or nursing care.

My mum spent several periods in respite care in a residential home, followed by a year in an EMI residential home and she has now been in a nursing home for a year. She moved to the nursing home after she broke her hip and, sadly, didn't regain her mobility and became wheelchair bound. The deciding factor for her was therefore her lack of mobility. All the residents in the care home could walk, albeit one or two used zimmer frames or walking sticks. However, some of the residents in her nursing home can also walk but I obviously cannot know whether they have any medical needs that are not obvious.

I would think that if you would prefer your mum to go to the residential home then it should be possible. The decision on what type of care is more suitable is not as crucial for respite as it would be for permanent care.

I hope it works out the way you would like it to. Keep us posted.
 

jenniferpa

Registered User
Jun 27, 2006
39,442
0
As Noelphobic indicated, it does seem as if mobility or lack thereof is often a deciding factor in placement. I think this is particularly true for anyone suffering from dementia. If somone is a mobile dementia sufferer, many residential or nursing homes will be unwilling to accept them, since they fear that they may wander, while they might be willing to take on a wheelchair bound dementia sufferer. The other thing to consider is - if she is considered suitable for a residential home, is it likely that she will need to be moved at some point in the future? Not that that should necessarily be a sticking point - everyone progresses at a different rate, and since there is no crystal ball, other things might happen before that point, and there is definitely a case to be made for making sure she's as happy as possible at the present, without worrying what the future might bring (now, if only I could take my own advice :) ).

Jennifer
 

Jann

Registered User
May 24, 2006
39
0
tingewick, bucks.
Thank you Jennifer and Noelphobic, for your replies.

It would thus seem that it is indeed possible for Mum to be placed in residential care for Dad's respite. She is mobile after her recent haemorrhage but Dad tells me she is not quite so mobile out of doors and he uses a wheelchair for this. (So it seems she meets both criteria for res. care, Jennifer and Noelphobic) She's also a little insecure at times in the house, Dad tells me, and needs watching in case she feels she will fall, - but that's not at all surprising considering what she's been through recently.

I believe because she is lacking confidence - maybe having been in hospital and immobile for the last three weeks. The consultants say her mobility will return fully so we wait to see.

Spoke to the SW in Isle of Man today and he feels fairly positive that she will be able to go into residential care. I have a meeting with him next Tuesday when I am over there and will keep you posted on my return come Friday.

Thanks so much for your support as always.
Jan xx
 

connie

Registered User
Mar 7, 2004
9,519
0
Frinton-on-Sea
My dear Lionel is in residential care, his needs are, washing, dressing, toilleting etc. (Totally unable to help himself)
He is now wheelchair bound, although on a good day I can walk him into the en-suite bathroom.(always more by lick than judgment)

His mind is still quite alert, it is akward when our loved ones fall between two stools.
 

Claire

Registered User
Mar 31, 2004
88
0
Coventry
Mum has been in a wheelchair since she broke her hip last December. At the time I was worried that she might have to move from her excellent care home, but I was assured that the only reason she would need to move from there to a nursing home would be if she needed a peg feed. It seems as if different homes/groups have different criteria, but if your mum is still mobile I would have thought the residential home would be suitable.

Take care
Claire
 

Jann

Registered User
May 24, 2006
39
0
tingewick, bucks.
Connie and Claire,

Thank you both very much for your support and advice.

As said previously, I am seeing SW on Tuesday next week at Mum and Dad's and I hope we can then discuss in depth all the possibilities.

As it is temporary respite care for a week, I'm hoping it will be residential care. That is for now, as I do suspect it will not be long before we will have to face Mum going into full time care.

It's so very distressing to hear Dad, when speaking with him each evening, showing immense courage and strength, even though I am aware he is very, very tired and slowly being worn down. I know he does this to protect us and have made him promise that he tell us everything openly and that it's okay to be frustrated, angry, sad, guilty, to cry and not hide all the emotions that AD brings - and my golly doesn't it, with a vengeance. Living so very far away as my sister and I do, we feel utterly helpless and useless.

I will be able to judge better for myself how things really are when I am there next week and hope we can find our way forward in this. Dearest Mum, bless her, is thankfully, oblivious to it, which at least gives us some small crumb of comfort.

Will let you know how things go and thank you once again for all your support.
Jan x
 

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