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Public asked to be aware of older people’s mental wellbeing as lockdown eases
| Published: 28th July 2020 13:41 |
AN AWARD-WINNING care company is urging the people of Wales to continue checking in on their elderly loved ones and particularly those with dementia as lockdown restrictions ease (July 2020).
A recent survey by the Alzheimer’s Society of around 2,000 people with dementia found that 45% of respondents said lockdown had a negative impact on their mental health.
Caroline Jones, Regional Manager at the award-winning care organisation, Abacare, which provides care across Wales, said: “The Coronavirus pandemic has hit the elderly, and particularly those with dementia, extremely hard. The social isolation and loss of routine can have a huge impact on the person with the condition, leading to confusion, loneliness and as research has found, declining mental health.
“Although restrictions are slowly lifting and people are getting back to their pre-lockdown routines and back to work, they might forget that the elderly and those with conditions such as dementia, still cannot get back to ‘normal’. Many are shielding, so are still staying safely at home and due to social distancing, social gatherings, lunch clubs and classes are not able to run.”
The survey revealed that a third of people living with dementia reported apathy or a sense of ‘giving up’.
Around 46% of unpaid carers also reported that loved ones with the condition have experienced stress, anxiety or depression.
More than a third of people living with dementia who answered the survey now don’t feel confident in going out and getting closer to normality, with the relaxation of some lockdown rules and one in ten say that they have lost friends since lockdown begun.
Up to an estimated 120,000 people live alone with dementia in the UK and this is predicted to double to around 240,000 by 2039.
Half of people affected by dementia say they now have fewer in-depth conversations and three in ten have gone at least four days without having a single conversation with someone.
Caroline added: “We appreciate that social distancing measures are still necessary and that people may have gone back to work or are looking after children, but we want to remind people to check in on their elderly family members, friends and even neighbours, from a safe distance, to help brighten their day and boost their mental health.
“We want people to remember the older generation at this unprecedented point in our world history. Anything you can do to put a smile on their faces will be a big help during these worrying times. Remember, always to keep two metres away from anyone who is not a member of your own household, wash your hands regularly, wash them well and, also, keep wiping down surfaces.
“Our carers ensure our service users see a friendly face daily, but many others don’t have this, so we’re urging people to step-up their contact with the elderly members of their community, but doing it, clearly, at a safe social distance.”
Abacare operates a professional Care Management Team that is committed to providing high quality care to individuals in their own homes.
The large team of trained, specialist, care workers provide positive based outcomes and person-centred care to people throughout the UK.
Abacare’s core values, instilled into every staff member, include ‘make us proud’, ‘focus on our service users’ wellbeing’, ‘communicate, listen well and speak with respect’, ‘be passionate, honest, caring and considerate’, ‘recruit and develop the very best’ and ‘lead by example’.
It believes it offers inspiring work for inspirational people as well as a flexible and supported working environment.
Caroline continued: “We are looking for kind, honest, caring and reliable individuals who wish to have a stable and long-term career in care, and who would like to forge rewarding relationships with the service users they care for. No experience is necessary to become a carer, as free, full training is given.
“We can provide our free, full training on a fast-track basis to make sure everyone we take on is ready. This includes a company induction, first aid, information on dementia, health and safety, food safety, infection control, handling medication and moving and handling service users, with the opportunity to achieve Qualification and Credit Framework (QCF) after the initial three months probationary period. The Government has also taken steps to ensure a quicker turnaround on DBS checks, so people can get into work quicker.
“New recruits are given free uniforms, access to national staff discount scheme for all major brands as well as 28 days paid holiday, paid travel between calls and paid mileage.
“This is a fantastic opportunity for someone who is looking for a change of career or someone who just fancies a bit of a change. Being a carer is an extremely rewarding job and you get to meet lots of wonderful people too.”
Anyone interested should contact their local branch and details of these can be found at https://abacare.org.uk/contact-us/. People can also find out more information about job vacancies at www.indeed.com/cmp/Abacare.
Abacare is a member of the United Kingdom Homecare Association, Ceretas (formerly British Association of Domiciliary Care), The National Homecare Council and The Information Commissioners Office (Data Protection). It is also registered with the Care Inspectorate Wales.
For more information or to enquire about a position at Abacare, please visit www.abacare.org.uk or www.indeed.com/cmp/Abacare. Alternatively, please follow the company on Facebook at http://on.fb.me/Yn4zmS or on Twitter by visiting www.twitter.com/visitabacare.
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