Luciana is dementia gran’s lifeline
SHARING her home has enabled Flo Taylor to remain there, despite suffering from dementia.
The 84-year-old had lived alone since her husband Stuart died four years ago.
Flo wanted to continue living independently but would sometimes forget to take her medication, her daughter Katie said.
After Katie, who lives in Somerset, contacted
Share and Care
Homeshare, Luciana
Canu, 42, moved into
Flo’s home in Balham, south-west London, in
February 2020.
Mother-of-two Katie said: “The joy of this is that if you’re old, you might not need care but just someone to nudge life along – and Luciana has great humanity.
“It’s having somebody in the house to watch that the fridge is full, that there’s milk, to ask, ‘Have you eaten?’ She is my eyes and ears.
“It’s a real enabler for Mum to remain in familiar surroundings and it has completely helped with loneliness.”
Luciana moved to the UK seven years ago from her home on the Italian island of Sardinia, but she struggled to cover the £700-a-month cost of a shared flat. The graphic design student, who works in the hospitality industry, said: “Without Flo, I would have spent lockdown alone in a room paying £700 and only getting 80% of my salary on furlough, feeling depressed.”
During lockdown, the pair spent time litterpicking and watching television.
And gran-of-four Flo helped Luciana improve her English and showed her how to make her own mince pies.
Luciana said: “It was challenging at the beginning but I learned to help her, remind her to take the pills and have lunch or drink water.
“We are different, but have a lot in common. It’s not about age… she’s really funny and very smart.”