Advice on temporary respite or private care provider in home

Specific disabilities and conditions
1

Hi there ,
Please can anyone offer advice on where to turn for a temporary respite setting or a company that provide care in the home for my elderly 86 year old mother . Never had mental health issues before and physically well for her age but a year ago went to try and drown herself on a shopping trip in local river . Was rescued by a passer by and sectioned but found to have pandemic depression and given and still on meds for that . Have lost my husband an NHS surgeon to Covid and my father and have no family or other support and a disabled son to look after also .

A local care home that is excellent provides respite care so I can go away to work but have told me they would not have her based on that one suicide attempt . A private psychiatrist in a private hospital would not see her either and private home carers say she will fail risk assessment . She has not tried it again but all say she is a risk to herself .

This means my son and I can never get a day off from her and I cant go to work away . She doesn’t not have dementia - we have local places for that .

How do I find a care provider that can cope with ‘regular’ mental illness . This seems like a massive prejudice when they all take patients who are very physically ill .

Any ideas so welcome - social services and GP offered nothing .

Thanks so very much

Claire

2

Hi and welcome. A care needs assessment is always the first step. At this initial assessment be honest and make some brief summary notes as well. Make the utter most of this rare opportunity to discuss everything with a social worker. Pay very close and careful attention to the total number of reviews online that are often left by care home visitors as they can and do actually tell you a lot more about the actual care home in question.
Use www.carehome.co.uk in order to learn a bit more about what to expect from a care home in the area as well. Then gather the right information. Good luck. After viewing a lot of care homes which were located in my area I have suddenly become a bona fide expert on care homes.
Look at a few different useful free care home directory websites. Either then email or call them up for some more information. Arrange a visit. Take a close look at the care home website too for the details. Make out a short list of local care homes to vet carefully. Trust your gut feeling.