Care
How can you find helpful, reliable and appropriate care for your parent, wherever they choose to live?
Oral hygiene and caring for teeth in later years
Once upon a time on a visit to my bedridden dad at his care home, he asked if I would clean his teeth as the carers hadn’t had time to do so. Of course, said I, and gathered up a bowl and some water, his toothbrush and toothpaste and a towel, ready for some in-mouth […]
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How to adjust your home to suit an older relative
Collaborative Post However much we put off thinking about the realities of the aging process, we cannot deny the toll that time takes on our bodies and minds. Living to a ripe old age is indisputably a blessing but one which comes with many strings attached, including physical deterioration that can be anywhere between bothersome […]
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What to say when they are never coming home
Sometimes it’s incredibly difficult to know what to do for the best. Dr Lesley Trenner offers advice to a reader who’s stuck between kindness and honesty when her mum asks when she can go home from nursing care. Dear Lesley, Gosh this is hard to start. Long story short. Mum caught Covid, went to hospital, […]
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We couldn’t have asked for a more caring nursing home
Reader story We’ve heard a great deal about difficulties visiting loved ones in care homes during the pandemic, and even before then it seems it’s as ever the bad experiences that makes the headlines. A long-time friend of When They Get Older recently had to find a nursing home fast for her mother, and she […]
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Practical ways to support yourself as a voluntary carer
The pressure of caring for an older relative can build up and sometimes feel overwhelming – especially if you’re juggling work and care commitments. A growing number of people are turning to Google to find support in caring. New research from Seniorcare by Lottie has found a surge in online searches from carers across the […]
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Visiting care homes in England from April 2022
Here’s a summary of the current guidance to care homes on visiting arrangement in England, applicable from 4 April 2022. The full text can be found in the ‘Covid-19 supplement to the infection prevention and control resource for adult social care’ published on 31 March. It’s worth checking this if you have a problem with […]
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How to convince elderly loved ones to receive support
Collaborative Post Not every older person is open to receiving support at first. If your more senior relatives are expressing similar sentiments, then it can seem like attempting to persuade them otherwise is futile. However, you can surely make progress here with the right words and approach. Precision is required for effective persuasion, so you […]
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Do people feel less isolated in housing with care and support?
With loneliness considered by many to be a plague of our times, and an ageing population in need of homes to suit their needs, a study into inclusive environments has highlighted some interesting points. As well as looking at who chooses to live in housing with care and support (HCS) and why, the team at […]
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Visiting care homes and other social care settings
In February 2022 much of the UK has started getting back to ‘normal’, but families of care home residents and people in other care homes settings are experiencing very different attitudes and actions about visiting their relatives. While many families are reportedly delighted to be visiting loved ones again as restrictions ease, others are still […]
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What is adult social care and who is it for?
Collaborative Post Adult social care is, pretty much as it sounds, a welfare system designed to look after adults who cannot look after themselves. This can be through physical disability, mental illness or special needs, or, simply, through ageing. What is adult social care? Adults who are unable to care for themselves qualify for adult […]
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