Hello

Hi all,

I have been meaning to look for a caring forum for a while now and today I finally did it.
I have been caring on an informal basis for my father who has Parkinson’s, he had a fall in January 2020 and was hospitalised until April 2020. After this he was given a dementia diagnosis in August 2020.
I have 2 siblings who do not participate in any of the caring but a very supportive husband.
Recently I have been finding it difficult and am anxious as I am gong back to full time work next week and wanted to reach out to others in a similar situation.

Thank you :slight_smile:

Welcome to the forum.
Have Social Services done a Needs Assessment for dad?
Is he claiming Attendance Allowance and exemption from Council Tax?
If he lives alone, that means he won’t pay anything and it can be backdated!
Do you have Power of Attorney?
Are you aware of the link between Parkinsons and dementia?

Sorry getting my head around forums, the last time I used one was in the 90s!
In answer to your questions, yes Dad has had a needs assessment, careline, falls detector and handles have been put in place. Falls clinic referral and counselling are a long wait. Trying to persuade him to go private for counselling but to no avail.
Attendance allowance is next on my list to sort, my siblings and I are all power of attorney and the house is in a trust for us all.
Yes, aware Parkinsons and dementia are linked, consultant appointment next week, not that they seem to do much.

That all sounds good, but don’t miss out on the Council Tax exemption, it can be backdated too. This is VERY easy to claim. The council send a short form asking for permission to contact the GP, asking for doctors contact details. That’s all. They do the rest!
Would dad benefit from someone calling in at the middle of the day?
Someone to say hello, make him some lunch and prepare things for the evening meal.
Would that put your mind at rest?
The AA form is daunting but usually there’s a Yes/No question at the top of the page, if it’s No you don’t have to fill anything in on that page. (Assuming it hasn’t changed since I last did it).