Why Can't We Look After The Eldery?

Dignity and care is it too much to ask for.

What makes a society, many things I guess, but one of the major and most important issues must be the care of the elderly, you know the people that built worked and fought for what we now enjoy today. The elderly are deserving of the best care possible, we as a society should make the elderly the most revered members of our communities. We should look up to them and treat them with respect and dignity.

Not long ago most families looked after their elderly relations at home, mainly due to the fact that the traditional family did not require both married partners having to work to keep a roof over there heads and maintain a decent standard of living. Thus one of the couple would be in a position to over see and care for an elderly family member.

Nowadays with people forced to work to make ends meet we are now relying on care homes to take over the day to day care of our vulnerable relations, most people would rather do this themselves but as I pointed out many simply don't have a choice.

So what happens we visit a care home, do our best to make sure it is comfortable and well staffed with caring individuals, often we are reassured by a smiling care manager who will answer any questions and query's we may have with confidence building answers.

So we duly allow our relations to be cared in ones of these not too cheap care homes. Assured that they will be well looked after and cared for. But this happens.

RESIDENTS at an Aberdeen care home were left dehydrated, according to a report today.
Staff at Kingsmead Nursing Home in Kingswells also allegedly failed to maintain standards of cleanliness and hygiene.
The Aberdeen home for disabled and old people has been forced to stop accepting residents after an inspection uncovered “significant failings” in its provision of care.

Care Commission regional manager Chris Stadames confirmed they were first made aware of three “serious problems” with the quality of care provided almost two months ago.
Mr Stadames said: “In late March, we received three complaints about serious problems with the quality of care.
“We referred one of those complaints to Aberdeenshire Council under the protection of vulnerable adults procedures.
“We immediately arranged for a full inspection at which we insisted the service manager had to be present.
“During that inspection, We uncovered a series of significant problems, including failures in acceptable hydration, poor hygiene and infection control standards, and overall poor management. You can read the rest of the report here.

Now Kingsmead Home caters mainly for people with senile dementia, the most vulnerable of our elderly because these are the people least likely to speak up for themselves, and ask for help, and unfortunately they are the least likely to be able to complain to family, a fact that is obviously not missed by some so called care workers.

I hope people don't think my analysis unkind but vulnerable elderly specifically those suffering from dementia are as vulnerable as new born babies. They need the same care and are unable to protect themselves. So how would we as a society treat so called carers if they left babies dehydrated, suffering, and in filthy conditions, i would hope the police would be involved and that the people responsible were not allowed to look after children again. So with this thought it should be no different for our elderly, they need and deserve the same level of care.

They should not be locked away and forgotten about and seen as a burden.

We all get old, let us as a society put the services and money into looking after the elderly that we would expect when we become old. This is not a subject that needs debated its something that should be actioned now.

If we as a society cant look after our most vulnerable, It points to a cold callous uncaring future for us all.

Maybe you can phone the nursing home concerned and pass on your comments. The telephone number is in the link here.