So if you are looking for companionship for the elderly and would like to have someone live with you then look for a companionship agency with a good reputation.

Care at home provides a 24-7 live in service for the elderly so to provide elderly companionship is a simple extension of our service and one that we have done for many years. Some of our clients simply require our carers to do a bit of cooking and cleaning around the house and to be there for a chat and a quick cup of tea!

In a workshop entitled “Who cares? Reforming Long-Term Care” Professor Jon Glasby said that the current system placed an unfair burden on individuals.

He said that alternative methods of funding long-term care needed to be considered, including:-

? Introducing compulsory long-term care insurance
? Abolishing long-term care fees
? Drawing on the value of homes through equity relief

Professor Glasby said that he hoped that the government’s Green Paper on care and support, due this year, would provide an opportunity to stimulate debate on the issue and lead to the overhaul of the system. He said: “There is the risk that we retain the status quo, with a few tweaks, but I believe the existing system needs a radical overhaul to fund long-term care for older people. It is a fundamental personal and political issue that is at stake and we really need to think and talk about where we may go next.”

“I personally think that it does not make sense that we distinguish between people who are “sick” and those who are “frail” or “disabled”. One service is free and the other is means-tested, which has significant implications for who pays and who provides. It does not make sense that someone who has cancer and is being treated in hospital pays nothing, while someone who is in a care home and is being treated in a similar way for Alzheimer’s is charged for their care. It is not meaningful to have a separate system of health and social care.”

1. There’s No Place Like Home

As people get older, their home tends to become even more precious to them. Any move away from this familiar environment, for example a holiday in a hotel, or even a short stay at the home of a son or daughter, can make them feel confused and disorientated. It is remarkable, however, how quickly they perk up when they return to the comfort of their own home!

Living in their own home, surrounded by familiar furniture, pictures, photographs and other objects, provides older people with a physical and emotional anchor and helps maintain their sense of identity.

In contrast, uprooting people and moving them into residential care can lead to a sense of confusion and hasten memory loss. Some older people can become depressed and apathetic and may even lose all sense of purpose when they are moved into a care home.

Furthermore, many older people still have a pet and the prospect of having to abandon their much loved cat or dog because they are moving into a care home can leave them feeling bereft and heart-broken.

2. Staying in Control of Your Life

Where older people remain in their own home, they maintain a sense of being in control of their own lives. They are able to determine their own daily routine and decide for themselves what time to get up and go to bed, what to eat and drink and what programmes to watch on television.

If they have had a long day on a Sunday, perhaps involving a trip out with members of their family, they can have a lie-in on the Monday without anyone expecting them to get up at a particular time, as would happen in a care home. This ability to continue to making decisions for themselves and stay in control of their life is important in helping older people to maintain their morale and remain in good psychological and spiritual health.

3. Support & Companionship

A good live-in carer will quickly gain an understanding of the person they are looking after and will be sensitive to their feelings and moods. They will learn what to say and do to cheer them up if they are feeling low, but just as important, they will develop a sense of when they want company and when they want to be on their own for a time.

A good carer will come to be valued as much for their companionship as for their care skills and many will find themselves treated almost like a member of the family. In a care home, on the other hand, there are just too many staff, each with too much to do, for individual patients to establish a close personal rapport with anyone.

4. Help with Personal Needs

Where an older person is suffering from painful arthritis or has other mobility problems, their carer will be able to help with their personal needs, such as dressing, washing and going to the toilet. A good carer will know how to offer their support in a sensitive and inobtrusive way, in order to preserve as far as possible the privacy and dignity of the person they are caring for. Furthermore, the help will be given as soon as it is needed, unlike in a care home, where patients will have their personal needs attended to at times which suit the busy routine of the care assistants.

5. House-Keeping

Eyesight and mobility problems will often prevent older people from maintaining the same standards of house-keeping as they did in their younger days. A live-in carer will keep the house clean and tidy, clear up any accidents or spillages and make sure that food stored in the fridge or larder is not kept longer than it should be. A clean and tidy house is more pleasant for the person being cared for and more welcoming for family and friends who visit or come to stay.

6. Shopping & Cooking

As part of the care needs assessment which takes place before the start of a live-in care service, a person receiving care at home will be asked in details about their likes and dislikes in terms of main meals, snacks and beverages and carers will always try to buy the food they like and cook it in the way they like it. Provided with meals they have chosen themselves and able to eat at a time which suits them, most older people will enjoy their food more and will tend to eat better than if they are offered the often unappetising food served up in care homes, which patients are often expected to eat much earlier in the day than they are used to at home in order to meet the home’s busy daily routine.

7. Social Contact

When an older person still lives in their own home, it is much easier for family, friends and neighbours to drop in, even for a few minutes, than if they have moved into a care home, where visiting times are restricted and quiet facilities limited. Moreover, visiting someone in their own home is a much more pleasant experience for family and friends than visiting them in a care home, where there is little privacy and where they are just one patient among many.

Wherever practicable carers will encourage the person they are caring for to invite round and entertain family, friends and neighbours on a regular basis. The carer will help them plan and prepare the refreshments and will then melt into the background, so that the client can enjoy their traditional role as host. By contrast, entertaining in care homes can be fraught with difficulties because of problems with visiting hours, catering and the lack of facilities for visitors.

8. Health & Medication

Once an elderly person who has previously lived on their own starts receiving live-in care, their health as well as their quality of life will generally start to improve. They tend to feel happier and more secure, they generally eat better and they may take more exercise; even more significantly, they start taking their medication more regularly, something which often falls by the wayside when they are struggling to cope with living on their own. Taking regular medication can often lead to significant improvements in their health and well-being, which in itself will give their family greater peace of mind. People cared for in their own home generally enjoy a better quality of life and may therefore live longer than people who move into residential care.

9. Protection from Accident or Harm

With the support of a carer at their side to help them if need be with the more demanding physical tasks in life (getting dressed, bathing and/or showering, moving about the house, night-time visits to the toilet etc), people receiving care at home are less likely to suffer falls or other accidents and are also less vulnerable to burglars or intruders. They will feel safer, more relaxed, more confident and, in all likelihood, happier in themselves. Furthermore, the knowledge that an ageing parent, who was previously struggling to cope with living on their own, is at less risk of accident or harm can be a huge relief to their children, who may live too far away to be regularly on hand.

10.Trips and Outings

Where appropriate carers can be provided who drive and this will enable the person receiving care to go on trips and outings. They may want to attend church or be driven to see family and friends or visit a local beauty spot. Such outings can be important in helping maintain contact with the outside world and keep their spirits up. By contrast, once people have moved into a nursing home, they often become so institutionalised that they rarely want to venture beyond the confines of the garden, even if given the opportunity to do so.

Chief Medical Officer, Sir Liam Donaldson, said today that most people affected by the virus would recover and the government had a “clear plan” to help prevent the virus spreading.

Given that the people whom we support with care will be one of the most vulnerable groups at risk from the imminent Swine Flu pandemic we want to ensure that the advice issued by the Department of Health is communicated to all clients and staff accordingly.

The Department of Health has issued some broad guidelines for anyone who may show flu-like symptoms:

• Those affected should stay at home and contact health services by phone.
• Good hygiene is particularly important. Washing your hands with soap and water is a good way to stop the spread of germs. It is important you cover your nose when sneezing, ideally using a disposable tissue which is immediately binned to avoid any transmission of the virus.
• Swine flu symptoms are similar to those produced by standard, seasonal flu.
• If you think you or a member of your family has the virus, you can check your symptoms and get official advice from the NHS Direct symptom checker.

The government has issued the following advice for those who think they are a family member might be infected:

1. Stay at home and rest; take medicines such as aspirin, ibuprofen or paracetamol to relieve symptoms (following the instructions with the medicines)
2. Children under 16 must not be given aspirin or ready made flu remedies containing aspirin
3. Drink plenty of fluids
4. Contact your surgery for further advice
5. For advice and information visit www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk, go to NHSDirect Interactive on digital satellite TV by pressing the interactive button on the remote control, or telephone NHS Direct on 0845 4647 47

There are Department of Health briefings at www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publichealth/Flu/index.htm, including the Chief Medical Officer’s guide to pandemic flu.

A stroke happens when the blood supply to the brain is disrupted. A blood clot restricting the flow of blood to the brain is the most common cause of strokes, but some are caused by bleeding in or around the brain from a burst blood vessel.

– In both cases the brain is starved of oxygen, damaging or killing cells
– Sufferers are often left with difficulty talking, walking and performing other basic tasks.

What are the symptoms of a stroke?

Not everyone will have the same symptoms and the symptoms may vary. The most common symptoms to look out for are:

– a sudden weakness or numbness of the face, arm or leg on one side of the body
– sudden loss or blurring of vision, in one or both eyes
– sudden difficulty speaking or understanding spoken language

In addition the following symptoms may also be apparent:

– sudden confusion
– sudden or severe headache with no apparent cause
– dizziness, unsteadiness or a sudden fall, especially with any of the other symptoms.

What are the clear signs that someone has suffered a stroke?

There’s three key things to look for.

– Facial weakness – Can the person smile? Has their mouth or eye drooped?
– Arm weakness – Can the person raise both arms?
– Speech problems – Can the person speak clearly and understand what you say?

What should I do if I think someone has had a stroke?

A stroke is a medical emergency. If you suspect a stroke call 999 immediately.

By calling 999, you can help someone reach hospital quickly and receive the early treatment they need. Prompt action can prevent further damage to the brain and help someone make a full recovery.
Delay can result in death or major long-term disabilities like paralysis, severe memory loss and communication problems.

What is a Transient Ischaemic Attack or TIA?

A TIA (sometimes called mini stroke) is similar to a full stroke but the symptoms may only last a few minutes and will have completely gone within 24 hours. Don’t ignore this because it could lead to a major stroke. See your GP as soon as possible and ask to be referred to a specialist stroke service. This should happen within seven days.

You can obtain further information from your local NHS direct or by calling the Stroke Association Helpline on 0845 3033100

For some this may only be small things such as appointments but in other cases it can be worse, such as forgetting the faces of loved ones or precious memories. This can be extremely distressing for those who are close to the sufferer.

There are a few things that can be done to help remember the appointment or perhaps even jog the memory into remembering some of those past events or faces.

Having a white board with the date and the events that are due to happen that day such as doctor’s appointments or friends visiting will be very useful.

Also, regularly looking through photos, letter or perhaps scrap books from the past may help bring back some of the memories that have been lost. Visiting as often as possible and asking questions about past homes, friends and pets may also help.

Also, music is a very powerful memory jogger and there are certain songs that will always take us back to a time when the same song meant something to us. It has also been discovered that music can be a help to dementia and Alzheimer’s sufferers.

Alzheimer’s is a form of Dementia and in the UK alone there are over 700,000 dementia sufferers! It has been shown that exercise can hold back the advance of Alzheimer’s, US researchers have established.

You won’t usually get a definite diagnosis at your first visit, especially if you are in the early stages. Your GP may follow your progress for several months to make a more definitive diagnosis.

Your GP is likely to ask about your medical history, as well as that of your family. He or she will probably give you a physical examination and may do blood and urine tests to rule out the possibility of other conditions that could be causing your dementia symptoms. Your GP may carry out memory tests – one that is often used is the mini mental state examination.

Depending on the outcome of the tests, your GP may refer you to a specialist doctor, psychiatrist or psychologist. He or she may do more detailed tests and suggest that you have a brain scan (either a CT, MRI or SPECT scan) to provide more information.

It’s difficult for doctors to diagnose what type of dementia you have as the symptoms are very similar for all of them. However, as medicines advance, it’s important to find out what is causing your dementia as some types can be treated and the symptoms slowed down.

There are 27 standards which care providers must adhere to in designing, implementing and monitoring the care services they offer. The regulations go into great detail about all aspects of both the provision and management of care services and they leave any would-be provider in no doubt as to the level of professionalism, commitment and dedication required to meet the standards.

However, one glaring anomaly is that, although all organisations providing care services to the elderly are officially bound by the regulations, agencies which supply self-employed carers are exempt from a large number of these same regulations!

If the exemptions related to minor and peripheral aspects of care, this would perhaps be understandable, but the alarming fact is that agencies supplying self-employed carers are allowed to ignore a large number of core regulations which have been specifically designed to ensure the safety and welfare of the very people they are supposed to be looking after.

Historically a lot of care services for the elderly have been provided by local authorities and, even though a lot of their work has now been delegated to private care companies, local authorities still insist that all outsourced care services have to be provided by agencies which employ their carers directly, rather than by those which supply self-employed carers. There is a good reason for local authorities to insist on this and that is, quite simply, that, they do not believe they can trust agencies supplying self-employed carers to provide a professional and reliable care service.

The list of regulations which care agencies supplying self-employed carers can ignore includes a number of key standards which are fundamental to the welfare and safety of vulnerable older people. In particular they are NOT REQUIRED to:-

? Provide clients with a written contract.
? Draw up a personalised care plan for each client.
? Provide a consistent, continuous and reliable care service.
? Draw up and implement policies & procedures in relation to health and safety and medication.
? Carry out any risk assessments.
? Draw up and implement policies and procedures in relation to clients’ money and possessions and in relation to safety and security in clients’ homes.
? Provide a comprehensive daily record of care provided or even of any significant incidents.
? Provide carers with detailed job descriptions.
? Provide carers with any formal training.

Conclusion

Many agencies advertising 24 hour live-in services merely act as introducers of self employed carers, over whose work they have very little control. The agency may make an effort to find suitable carers, but it has no responsibility to train or supervise them or monitor their work. Indeed, in most cases the client will pay the carer directly and pay a separate agency fee on top. These agency fees can be quite substantial and many clients and their families may be left wondering exactly what the agency really does to justify its fees.

If you want to be sure of receiving a professional care service from properly trained carers, then you should engage a care provider which employs its carers directly. Before the service starts, you will receive a visit from an experienced nurse/care assessor who will assess your care needs, consider any risks involved and draw up a detailed care plan. The care will then be delivered in accordance with the plan by a small and settled team of qualified and experienced carers, whose work will be regularly monitored and appraised.

It may cost slightly more to use an agency which employs its carers directly, but it is the only sure way of guaranteeing a professional and reliable service. Not only will this enhance the quality of life of the person being cared for, it will also provide their family and friends with far greater peace of mind.

Dementia is a term commonly used to describe various different brain disorders that have one thing in common – a loss of brain function which is usually progressive and eventually severe, leaving the person severely disabled and in most situations extremely frustrated.

The term ‘dementia’ is used to describe the symptoms that occur when the brain is affected by conditions, including Alzheimer’s disease, stroke and many other rare conditions.

Symptoms of dementia include problems with speech and understanding, a loss of memory, confusion and can lead to aggressive behaviour. Carers looking after people with Dementia need to have special training in this field and experience is vital.

A link to causes of dimentia (opens in a new window)

It is however, important to note that people with dementia can still be cared for in their own home, as compared to having to be placed in a care home.

The advantage of care at home with respect to dementia and in particular with Alzheimers, is that anyone with this desease very much benefits from having a set routine and familiar surroundings. It is therefore easier to acheive this in their own home.

For more help and advice on this subject and dementia care at home you can email Care at Home or visit Care at Home’s contact page.