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A difficult situation........... ..

(32 Posts)
Oopsminty Thu 05-Nov-20 14:36:48

What price life for a very elderly person if there is no quality of life and they are not allowed to see their nearest and dearest?

Exactly, Callistemon.

It's desperately sad

Oopsminty Thu 05-Nov-20 14:34:28

I assume there is a DOLS in place

And the family don't have POA for health

This family hadn't been able to hug their mother for 9 months.

And this isn't an isolated incident. A friend of mine has just managed to get her mother out of a nursing home after much stress where the police were called more than once. Social Services finally found in her favour and her mother is now living at with her daughter,

My friend is not a criminal nor a bully. She just wanted to be able to care for her mother at home.

There was an interview with a woman from the Alzheimer's Society this morning. It's tragic how old people are being forced to live out their lives basically locked in bedrooms. Families are desperately trying to visit and not being able to. Patients with dementia are deteriorating and dying. It's a tragedy.

This family gave an interview this morning and explained how the incident had happened.

Link from the Mail, (which might cause consternation for some), but it does show a video of the daughter explaining.

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8916831/Corrie-actresss-nurse-mother-tells-desperate-battle-stars-dementia-stricken-grandmother.html

Callistemon Thu 05-Nov-20 14:33:40

why they are concerned at curtailed visiting for at least a month.
I thought I heard the granddaughter say they had not been allowed to visit for 9 months and it appeared that they were only able to talk to her through a window.

Some care homes have made better arrangements for visits even if there is not allowed to be physical contact.

What price life for a very elderly person if there is no quality of life and they are not allowed to see their nearest and dearest?

Callistemon Thu 05-Nov-20 14:29:43

It would be unusual for the home to have PoA, wouldn't it?

I saw the news item and the situation is heartbreaking as similar situations will be for so many, but this case does raise important questions.

Tweedle24 Thu 05-Nov-20 14:24:55

According to the article, the daughter did not have Power of Attorney for her mother’s health and welfare.
There is no mention of the elderly lady’s wishes, only those of the daughter. Were the police called because the staff thought she was being taken against her wishes? Did the home have PoA? There are a lot of unanswered questions

Luckygirl Thu 05-Nov-20 14:13:08

And for SSD to trigger helpful services in the home.

Luckygirl Thu 05-Nov-20 14:12:47

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-humber-54801702

What a conundrum.

I can see why this lady's family might want to spend time with her at her very great age, and why they are concerned at curtailed visiting for at least a month.

I am also puzzled why the home is deemed to be legally in charge of this woman - they have a legal obligation to provide good care for her while she is there, but do they have the obligation to prevent her family choosing to look after her at home? I am not entirely sure; and I worked in this field for many years.

I can understand they might involve the local authority social services if they have reason to believe that she would be poorly cared for elsewhere - she would be classed as a vulnerable adult.

The use of the police and an arrest (however brief) seems very heavy handed. A call to SSD to get someone to check the home circumstances would seem to be a better option.