The daily routine

During my short time as a care worker I have discovered that routine is probably one of the most important things for my ladies and gents. They like to know who is coming and at what time, then more importantly, what we are doing in what order when we arrive. If I have a new carer going in to see one of my people I will always make a point of running through the order that I do things; Not only does this help the person we are caring for but also helps us as carers complete the call within the time allowed. People with dementia obviously need this routine more than anyone else but It was not until recently that I realised how much the things we say can also become part of that routine.






I have been looking after Brian for about six weeks now and quickly got him into a routine. As he sits on the chair of the stair lift I say (as I do with a lot of people) 'first floor ladies lingerie,' to which he will always chuckle and reminisce about the TV programme 'Are you being served'. Then when we get to the shower I  regale him with a verse of singing in the rain. which he dutifully joins in with; He has a little green pouch with his money in, so a burst of The Robin Hood theme has to be sung as I put it on the bedside cabinet for him, and so on.






The other night I went in and Brian had got very distressed about a family matter and his wife was almost at the end of her tether trying to calm him down. As with a lot of dementia patients he had become fixated on the problem and would not let it go despite several reassurances. It is in these circumstances that staying calm when all round you are not is the best policy. A change of subject was needed but I was not sure how, so I decided to just start getting him ready for bed, I coaxed Brian out of his chair and helped him as he unsteadily made his way to the chair lift. He was extremely confused and barely seemed to know what was going on.


As he sat in the chair of the stair lift I chipped in with my usual line 'First floor; Ladies lingerie'


Almost immediately, I could see the tension leaving his face as he looked up and chuckled 'Oh! It's you.' He then leant forward and gave me a hug.






It was one of those special moments that makes being a care worker worth while.




It also occurred to me, that my little one liners and songs are what identifies me to a lot of people with dementia,  His short term memory did not pick up on my face but my daily routine performance.

double vision

Whilst visiting Louisa the other day she handed me a letter and asked if I could read it to her.


'It's about my eyes' she said. 'I am having my an operation on them, so hopefully I will be able to read it myself soon.'


I opened the envelope and started to read the information out loud. It was standard stuff about what to do on the day of the operation; Time and date; What to bring; where to park;  post op treatment etc.
I had read two pages and just turned over the third page to read when I stopped in my tracks.


'Have you had any trouble with double vision Louisa? I enquired
'No?'
'Are you sure?'
'Yes I'm having a cataract removed in my left eye'
'And that hasn't caused any double vision?'
'No. Why?
'Well they've sent you two identical letters in the same envelope.'

Outrageous treatment of Carers

Just recently there has been a lot in the news about poor care. Whilst I abhor what has gone on, I am equally disgusted with the way some carers are treated by their companies. I recently spoke to two different carers who work for two different companies and was astonished to find that they are not paid for any time that they take to travel between calls. They are expected to either cut short one call to reach the next or use their own time if they take too long at the call. This effectively means that vulnerable people are being rushed by a carer who is constantly looking to leave after 6 minutes because that constitutes 15 minutes care; This in itself must create stress to the service users and the carer resulting in fraught situations where someone is taking longer than expected;  worst case scenario this could lead to abuse. The alternative is that the more conscientious carers work for five hours and get paid for four. At rate of £7.20 an hour that sounds like it takes it below the minimum wage. Is it any wonder we are hearing stories of poor care when the carers are treated in such a way.


On a note about zero hours contracts being outlawed the companies are getting round it by offering a 7 hour contract over a week.