We had to sell my mum’s flat to fund her fees
NIKKI BLACKBOROW was shocked and dismayed at the length of time it took to find care for her elderly mother and stepfather.
Her mother Penny Robertson, a former deputy headmistress, was left in a Gloucestershire hospital for weeks, preventing other patients using the bed and costing the NHS thousands.
Ms Blackborow, a teacher, 54, from Southgate, north London, was left frustrated and irritated by the complexity of the social care system, the lack of advice and the slow pace of the whole process of finding her parents a place.
She said: “I had no idea that finding care for two frail pensioners would take so long or cost so much.
“My mum, who was 74, was admitted after a choking incident and it became apparent that she couldn’t go home to live with my 80-year-old stepfather.
But that meant he couldn’t stay in their flat as he suffered from Alzheimers and relied on her.
“My mum was treated and could have been discharged almost immediately but she stayed for three weeks.
“She didn’t want to be there, we didn’t want her there and I’m sure the medics didn’t either. Goodness knows how much that cost the NHS.
“In the end my sister and I took her back to her flat and cared for her there for almost another two weeks before we found a respite care bed.
“That was after looking.”
The home cost £1,400 a week each. Mrs Robertson’s husband five weeks of Ian was unable to cope with the stress of the upheaval and he died in January.
Ms Blackborow says: “We then had to move mum into a nursing home, which was the same price.
“My sister and I were horrified by the cost and horrified by the situation we found ourselves in,
“We had to sell my mum’s flat to fund the care, and even though we battled and won Continuing Health Care, which now pays the home fees, we now pay £1,000 a week for private carers to sit with her from 9am until 8pm as there isn’t a lot of stimulation.
“We are well-educated, articulate resourceful people and we know how to argue our case.
“I hate to think how people like my mum get on if they have no one fighting their corner.
“We found the system slow and simply not fit for purpose.”