Caring for Carers

Here is a very good article with a lot of links embedded into it which explains clearly and simply what help and support should be available to you if you are a Carer. I think one of the most important points it makes is with regard to help from Social Services and a Community Care Assessment which accesses the person being cared for to see what their needs are and to identify support they can expect from Social Services. You as a Carer can have your own needs included in this and this can be very helpful for you as a Carer to identify help and support for you.


You see there are two people involved or perhaps more than two if you care for more than one family member. My point is that the Carer must be included into the equation. The Carer needs help, assistance and support to protect and maintain their own mental and physical well being. For without the Carer the person to be cared for or persons to be cared for inevitably suffer.


In my own experience of caring for a family member for many years now I have found that there appears to be a lot of media attention and publicity about support for Carers especially with regard to dementia and yet at the local or ground level any support or help especially of a practical nature is limited especially if one has to pay privately for it.


This is not to denigrate the many excellent and helpful charities and support groups which do brilliant work. It is simply to highlight my own experience. I care for someone with both visual impairment and dementia. I have found people well meaning but in terms of practical support I have found the help and support very limited. I think that the voluntary organisations are stretched to the limit. They are in need of a lot more funding and need support and help themselves.


I would also state that from my experience with Social Services for Elderly Care they are very stretched in terms of finances and funding for help and support even for the person to be cared for. They are prioritising only the most urgent and dire cases. If one can pay there seems to be no priority to carry out a Care Assessment but from my understanding this is a right.


That being said please do look at this article which follows by clicking on the Link. It is a very good article setting out clearly rights and responsibilities. 


www.nhs.uk/CarersDirect/carerslives/gettinghelp/Pages/Caringforcarers.aspx