Mr K is a gentleman who was referred to Friendship at Home by his GP for a wellbeing check on one of our newer projects aimed at general wellbeing for people over 75 years of age. One of our skilled volunteer wellbeing workers visited him and had a friendly chat, they discussed things such as health, safety, financial matters, housing, getting out and about etc to see where Mr K’s quality of life could be enhanced. Mr K really enjoyed the chat, he said the volunteer was “jovial and caring” and he enjoyed her company. Following the conversation, information was passed to the project co-ordinator and it was mutually agreed that Mr K would benefit from telecare and a key safe. This was organised by the co-ordinator and it was discovered that Mr K already had telecare but was not aware of it and did not know how to use it so it was arranged to have this checked and assistance given to Mr K how to use it properly. The key safe was also fitted and both adaptations have since been put to good use as Mr K has had a series of falls and was able to call for help using the telecare system. Emergency services were able to access his property without causing any damage but more importantly as quickly as possible to get him the medical attention he needed promptly.
Mrs M lives in an isolated NEL village, she has been a member of Friendship at Home as part of our befriending service for quite some time and was recently referred by her GP for a wellbeing check. During the wellbeing check, it was discovered that Mrs M was privately funding daily care to assist with essential personal care. This was costly and significantly impacted Mrs M’s financial budget. When the wellbeing worker suggested Mrs M apply for attendance allowance, Mrs M said she had applied for it twice previously and been refused but the wellbeing worker suggested some assistance with the application process and as a result, the attendance allowance was granted. Mrs M stated “I am over the moon with joy I have just received confirmation I have been granted the lower rate of Attendance Allowance, this will make a huge difference to my life, I cannot thank you enough.” The attendance allowance will allow Mrs M to fund further care in the future should she ever need it.