Tag Archives: carer
Cold, lonely winter may cost 25,000 old people their lives
“Small things and a friendly face make all the difference to a family carer.”
Older people in the West Country are becoming increasingly isolated as neighbours fail to take notice of their basic needs.
According to a new report from the charity Age UK, one in four people aged 65 or more in the South West are not getting any help, support or companionship from people on their doorstep.
“It is a sad fact of life,” said Tom Williams, chairman of a Pensioners and 50-Plus Action Group in the region. “Times have changed and this has been happening more and more over the years. People are busy with their own lives and they don’t pop into each others houses any more.
He added: “We all know individuals who have children who live abroad, in America and Australia, and the chances are they aren’t coming back. These people are all right when they are living as a couple, but when one dies the survivor tends to get very lonely. It’s a real problem, but it’s hard to know what to do.”
Mr Williams, who is a keen advocate of over-50s getting more involved in their community, said older people were sometimes guilty of apathy themselves.
“It goes both ways. Older people need to get out more and be more vocal as well.”
Don’t just blame staff – companies must be ‘accountable’ for care home failings
Minister pledges new rules to ensure firms which fail vulnerable patients are punished
Nina Lakhani
Tuesday 13 November 2012
Private companies which get public money to run care homes will be made “corporately accountable” for poor standards, the Care Services minister has pledged.
Norman Lamb said he would address regulatory gaps to ensure there were consequences for firms which failed vulnerable patients in hospitals or care homes. At present, care home staff and managers are more likely to be held accountable for abuse than the companies, executives and investors that actually profit from failing homes.
Carers are stressed and exhausted
[Posted: Thu 08/11/2012 by Deborah Condon www.irishhealth.com]
Many carers in Ireland are stressed, exhausted and isolated and have health problems themselves, a new survey has found.
Some 121 carers took part in the online survey. Most were aged between 31 and 60 and the majority of people being cared for were either over 60 or under 18.
Among the carers, almost three in four said that they were more stressed now compared to one year ago. However, almost half said that they were too embarrassed to tell anyone they were stressed.
