My mother's regular carer is off sick and there are others covering, just at the time when her care visits have been increased.
Last week one of the new carers overdosed her by giving her the meds she had already had. We had a few hours of panic but in the end she was fine. Still, the local emergency response team was called out and her GP was on the phone to me (I don't live near her) so it wasn't trivial. She has blood pressure meds and those could have been a serious problem.
The carer should have read the care sheet, but seems instead to have listened to Mum's eternal cry of 'I haven't had my meds' (when she has). They are in a blister pack and locked away from Mum but unfortunately the carers have to start the pack half-way through the week and that doesn't help make things clearer. I'm getting that changed.
However: no matter how you look at it, the carer overdosed her and didn't check sufficiently before giving her the second lot of meds. I was told by the care agency that this carer had since been suspended. I'm still waiting to hear the outcome.
In the meantime, the care agency bill has come and we're being charged for the session during which Mum was overdosed. I was amazed to see that. It's not the cost, it's the fact that they don't seem to have taken it that seriously. What do others think?
Last week one of the new carers overdosed her by giving her the meds she had already had. We had a few hours of panic but in the end she was fine. Still, the local emergency response team was called out and her GP was on the phone to me (I don't live near her) so it wasn't trivial. She has blood pressure meds and those could have been a serious problem.
The carer should have read the care sheet, but seems instead to have listened to Mum's eternal cry of 'I haven't had my meds' (when she has). They are in a blister pack and locked away from Mum but unfortunately the carers have to start the pack half-way through the week and that doesn't help make things clearer. I'm getting that changed.
However: no matter how you look at it, the carer overdosed her and didn't check sufficiently before giving her the second lot of meds. I was told by the care agency that this carer had since been suspended. I'm still waiting to hear the outcome.
In the meantime, the care agency bill has come and we're being charged for the session during which Mum was overdosed. I was amazed to see that. It's not the cost, it's the fact that they don't seem to have taken it that seriously. What do others think?