Put things in order before dementia sets in

I WAS in the premier section of a leading bank recently when I saw something that disturbed me.

There was a father and son accompanied by a maid sitting at the lounge. A female customer service officer was attending to them.

The son, assisted by the officer and maid, was trying to persuade the old man to sign a document.

I felt the officer’s action was morally wrong as she seemed to be helping the son to persuade or even “force” the father to sign the document. The father, I later found out, is 84 years old and suffering from dementia. He was unable to speak and could hardly hold the pen steadily or know what to do with it. I felt very concerned for the old man who seemed to be lost as he stared blankly and did not utter a word.

After their unsuccessful attempts, the bank officer should have taken the cue to abort the transaction right away on grounds that the old man most probably did not have the ability to comprehend the significance of the document he was supposed to sign. She could have politely insisted on seeing a doctor’s letter pertaining to the old man’s mental capacity or at least consult a senior colleague.

Instead, she continued to persuade the old man to sign the document. I don’t know whether the transaction was completed but I later had a word with the manager of the bank who agreed with my assessment.

I would advise those with elderly parents to get the necessary paperwork done before their elders are mentally incapable of understanding what is going on. As dementia does not happen overnight, it would be good to have conversations with family members while they are still competent and able to comprehend exactly what’s going on and what documents they are expected to sign and why.

As for bank officers, their standard operating procedures in such circumstances should be to seek further advice from senior colleagues and not be too enthusiastic to please every customer when circumstances do not warrant so.