The Challenge
I was living alone and struggling with getting around due to muscle and bone disorder and dealing with arthritis. I struggled with my balance which meant that I had to keep grabbing onto things to keep me steady.
The Solution
My daughter gave me a list with a lot of local support services and one of these was disabled adaptations for the home. When I went to the doctors’, at her request, a practice nurse informed me of Care & Repair and got in contact with them on my behalf.
After speaking to a member of the team and talked them through my situation and requirements, a support worker got in touch to confirm a date to visit my home and carry out an assessment. When he and a colleague came round, he went through a set of questions regarding falls prevention and heating, to see what I could be eligible for and made a note of any financial benefits. I was given some detailed energy advice and a referral was made to Age UK to apply for Attendance Allowance. They observed how I was struggling in areas of the home, for instance, having to hold the stair bannister with both hands and move down the stairs sideways, also the difficulty I had with bathing.
The interventions I was provided with included:
The installation of grabrails by the front door which made me feel more comfortable about going outside in the colder months when the steps would be frozen over
Bannister rails for the stairs and a newel rail which enabled me to turn onto the landing with ease and maintain balance
Shower rail to get in and out of the shower with ease
Rail on the wall next to the bath to help me stand and get in and out
Rail in the toilet to get on and off the toilet safely and independently
A referral was made to Adult Social Care for a perching stool that would allow me to perch on the stool while working in the kitchen as I have difficulty standing for long
A referral was made with my agreement, to the Care & Repair Technical team for a wet room adaptation after I was given an estimate of costs.
Everything seemed to fall into place as soon as the referral to Care & Repair was made. I began to receive phone calls, from the Home Plus support worker and then from Age UK and support from Adult Social Care.