Caring solution
ALMOST no one wants to end up in a care home and yet there are well over 400,000 people in them across the UK – with tens of thousands more moving in every year. There are various reasons why this happens, including Social Services payments that are structured toward putting the elderly into care homes.
There is cultural inertia, too – it’s simply what we expect, despite one survey showing that 97 per cent of people say it is far from how they want to spend what should be their golden years.
But perhaps the biggest reason is simply because so few people know the alternative.
“When it gets to the point that people feel their parent needs full-time care, most aren’t aware of their options,” says Peter Dowds, the founder of Elder, which specialises in bringing care to the home rather than taking the elderly away from their everyday lives to be looked after.
“By choosing live-in care, people can not only keep their parents in their own home – with all the benefits that brings from being in their own community with their friends – but they also will receive one-to-one care and companionship, 24/7.
“It is a much more comprehensive service than a care home. It is a particularly good solution for people who would like their parents to be able to maintain their independence for as long as possible.”
Live-in care brings day and night support, a cheery face who can help with the big problem of loneliness while helping with tasks such as administering medication, the cooking, even looking after a pet.
And the carer can also help with outings such as trips to clubs. It can be a solution for elderly but independent people with conditions including dementia, heart disease, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis and cancer.
Judith Mackay from Swindon has had a live-in carer for six months. “Mum was originally in a care home, but she didn’t feel happy,” says her son Brian. “She felt like she had lost a lot of her independence, eating what they said when they said, adhering to fairly rigid rules.
“When we realised she could get a better level of care, back in her own home, for less money she was over the moon.”
Live-in care is not only comforting on a day-to-day level, it helps with one of the big problems with care homes – the cost.
Elder’s care can work out up to 30 per cent cheaper than a home, with costs dependent on how many hours each week a carer needs to be present.