Is my dad entitled to anything at 78 for kind of living alone?

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amtc

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My dad is 78 and my mam 69. My mam has gone to Australia to be with her mother who is 90 and lives there. She is on a tourist visa so has to come out every 3 months to be able to renew. Last time she went in June, came back October and back out in December with return booked March. She may well this time just go to Bali for a day to reapply or may even apply for a Carer's visa. My parents whilst not separated are not exactly on best of terms.

Anyway all of this leaves my dad on his own. I have no siblings and whereas he can cope I have a really bad cold this week and don't want to infect him. I have a job that requires travel, plus I broke my wrist so I can type one handed but can't drive. My dad whilst still mobile uses a stick and is under the care of a geriatric specialist (which he meets by appointment in the local pub bizarrely).

Anyway we were wondering if he would be entitled to some kind of living alone allowance or home help?
 
I would imagine your first port of call will be his public health nurse. He may be entitled to home help. However he may only get a half hour in the morning and a half hour in the evening. This was as much as my dad got and he was in his 90's! This help is usually for weekdays. Besides that can he afford a cleaner to come in once a week to do a thorough clean? is there a local meals on wheels service he could avail of?
 
He'd be doing well to get home help coming in twice a day, my father is barely mobile even with a rollator and has only recently been increased to 5 days a week for around half hour in mornings to ensure he can get out of bed and dressed. Public health nurse is definitely the first stop to see if he can get any home help.
 
Thanks. I was onto the HSE and they advised me similarly. My dad whilst slow has no particular issues getting dressed. He will only bath on Sundays (relict of childhood) but is terrified of getting out and in. HSE advised to get public health nurse to come and assess re grab rails.

I know not their fault but I was more thinking of the care my nana gets in Australia...she has seven regular carers, all of whom do different things. One prays with her, one sings, one prepares batch meals, one does housework, one showers. She has three hours every day and a whole day Friday. Apparently here not allowed to even peel potatoes or clean the floor!

With my dad it's really housework. I will try and source a cleaner.

My main issue was really living alone allowance. I don't see my mam coming back anytime soon. I think he qualifies and Citizens Information agreed. It's only 9 euro but that would pay for a cleaner.
 
Yes technically the home help is supposed to be for personal care only but it all depends on who you get and where you are. My father's lady is great and will gladly do the wash up/ironing/floor, cook him breakfast or whatever she can fit in in the time she is there. He also only showers once a week and on that day obviously she has no time for anything else.

My uncle in a different county has home help 5 days a week, he is in a lot better shape than my father and well able to get around etc but can't cook and never could and has a dietary need so he has had this home help since his wife died and it's all housework based, absolutely no actual personal care involved.

So I would try and get the home help anyway and wait and see what they will actually do then when you have them, obviously if you can afford a cleaner than that's a good option, you might not get it for 9 euro an hour though!
 
I have a friend whose mother is 96 and living alone. She (the mother) pays for a carer to come in for two hours in the morning and two hours in the afternoon Monday to Friday. A different lady does Saturday and Sunday. Would he be able to afford that? I think he would be exceptionally lucky to get any home care package from the HSE while he is still mobile and able to get out and about.
 
A Home Help is not just for personal care, domestic tasks are part of their job description. In practice I'd guess it varies a lot from client to client depending on their needs.
 
Again I'd say it depends, our PHN said hours would only be allocated for personal care, no housework but the practice works out differently.
 
My Dad also had a problem with getting in and out of his bath. He paid €8k to have a shower room installed in a downstairs area. We are not sure if it was used very often but he felt under pressure to have it installed by my sister. Very shortly after he went to live in a nursing home. His house was sold and the new shower dumped in a skip by the new owners.
It is interesting to compare the help a person receives when they are old in other countries. It seems we get practically nothing in this country.
My father had a cleaner who called once a day for an hour but was paid for two. I have to say I never noticed the house to be clean when we visited. My father would only allow her to clean certain rooms. However I believe that the visit was needed even though my father hated anyone calling.
 
Couple of practical things to think about as well, one is a personal alarm that would alert you and some others (neighbours for example) if he had a fall. I know in my area there is a local voluntary group that sets these up through I think Eir.

Secondly is there anything like an elderly group he could get involved in or visit. In my area, my Mam gets picked up on a Tuesday morning by taxi, taken to the day care centre where she gets mass, dinner, meets other people, a hairdresser comes in, lots of things going on and she gets dropped back to her door by 4, all for €15.

Also consider meals on wheels.

Speaking from experience with my own mam as me and my family live a long way away, a lot of this is almost like have people checking her daily without it seeming like a check.
 
Unbelievably easy to arrange this morning. Quite impressed. Turns out public health nurse knows the geriatric doctor that my dad goes to as he had preadvised my dad. She rang him to make assessment for tomorrow and he has chiropodist appointment made for this afternoon already through them.

I must say things quickened up much when I said he also has private health insurance.
 
He may also be entitled to a grant of up to €30,000 from his Local Authority to carry out alterations to the house such as converting bath to walk-in shower room etc which may make life easier for him.
 
OK so the assessment has been done now and redone today. Two hours. Very detailed. And very practical! Memory tests. Nutrition advice. Aids assessment. Pendant assessment. Someone to phone. Advice on practical stuff like too many rugs and trip hazards. Actually was very good. The only thing my dad really needs urgently are the bathroom aids. Nurse said no problem getting them but waiting list to fit. I don't mind paying for this.
 
Great that it's been done and ye know what's needed now. Hope the bathroom gets sorted. It shouldn't be too difficult to get the aids fitted once they provide them - or do they have to provide and fit?
 
No they post them out. My dad will get them fitted

Brought up issue I hadn't thought about. I was laughing at my dad finding his glasses in the fridge. He has a terrible habit of not concentrating. I just thought it was a one off as he is very well informed on politics and world affairs. Uses computer every day and facetimes me.

Anyway public health nurse rang me yesterday to ask how things were going as I was so faraway. I live five minutes away. She said he said I lived in Kerry! The estate I live in is called Waterville after Kerry but is in D15.

I've arranged to accompany my dad to his next doctor appointment
 
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