Coping at Home

On your immediate return home, you may need some assistance from friends or relatives to settle in. If, for some reason, you are unable to broach the subject, the nurses at the hospital will be more than pleased to talk to your family or friends on your behalf. Likewise, social services may be able to contact a neighbour on your behalf and make sure that your home is ready for your return.

If there is no-one you can ask to help you, the hospital may be able to arrange for a volunteer from an organisation such as the Red Cross or Royal Voluntary Services (organisations vary around the UK) to get your home ready for you, e.g., by stocking up on basic food supplies, making your bed or switching the heating on.

You may find that you need aids to help you move around the house, such as a raised toilet seat, grab handles, a wheelchair, walking frame or sticks, or that adaptations need to be made to your home. Your Continuing Healthcare team will do all they can to help. There may also be items that you will wish to purchase to make life easier and more comfortable. You can find more information about mobility aid in our separate ‘Mobility Guide’.

The District Nurse

Where necessary, the Charge Nurse at the hospital will arrange for a District Nurse to visit you at home in order to change dressings and administer injections. Community Alarms and Telecare Services.

Community Alarms and Telecare Services

If you are worried about having an accident or falling ill while you are in your own home alone, community alarms provide emergency access that is staffed 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

The community alarm is connected to your telephone line and can be activated via a pendant worn around the neck or a wrist band. They provide reassurance to your family and friends that help, if needed, is only a touch of a button away.

Telecare systems are a range of simple sensors that either raise an alarm or act as a reminder to help to keep you safe and independent in your own home, they include items such as: door sensors, movement sensors, medication reminders and smoke, gas or flood detectors.

The housing department of your local council, Age UK and private companies provide this valuable service.

Home Care

Your Continuing Care team, or the Charge Nurse at the hospital, will arrange where necessary to have a Home Carer visit you on a regular basis to help with personal things like washing or dressing, as well as preparing meals, shopping and cleaning. Alternatively, this can be arranged privately yourself or by family or friends. Home Care can be arranged from as little as 15 minutes a week all the way up to 24 hours a day.

There are numerous Home Care providers out there and so it’s important to find one that suits you. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) regulates Home Care providers and publishes a rating for each one on their website. This can be a good place to check which provider has the same values as you do when selecting a provider.

Meals on Wheels

Many Meals on Wheels services have now been disbanded or contracted out to private companies due to funding cuts. There may be a number of companies locally that offer either a hot meal delivery service or frozen meals. Details will be available by searching online or through your local authority.

Most Home Care providers will carry out an assessment of your needs and be able to discuss with you and offer suggestions for the type of care package you require to support you at home.

Care & Repair Agencies

Care and Repair Agencies work to help you to remain in your own home and to live as independently as possible. They do this by providing information about choices that can improve your safety, security, comfort and convenience. Care and Repair agencies can help you tap into funding and expertise to adapt, repair or improve your home. This might mean jobs as small as adding handrails or larger projects, such as creating a specially adapted bathroom. You can search for Care and Repair agencies online or your local authority should also be able to give you more information about what is available in your region.

Trusted Traders

Many local authorities in the UK now run a Trusted Traders scheme. This means that they stringently vet traders such as builders, gardeners, electricians and plumbers, to ensure that they offer their customers the highest standards of service. For a company to become a ‘Trusted Trader’ takes a lot but helps to give customers the peace of mind that they can expect a good job for a fair price, without fearing rogue traders or doorstep crime. Your local authority will be able to give you details of Trusted Traders in your area.