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It Just Is Not Fair

  • Posted on January 27, 2012 at 4:07 pm

Honestly, it just isn’t right that a company takes on the task of providing Home Support for the Elderly, when they do NOT have properly trained personnel.

It is not fair, that our Seniors are subjected to such inadequate care, given all they have done for our society, during their earlier lives.

With the regular worker off today, I had to cancel the substitute being sent for the morning, not because I am an asshole, but simply because it is My Mother.  I cannot, in good conscience subject her to pain, to rough and incomplete treatment, nor can I risk her safety.

My choices for this morning, was Nerissa or Shirley.

Shirley is okay for a last ditch sponge bath, but that is if Mom can manage getting up on her own. I doubt if Shirley could handle assisting Mom in standing, nor do I think she could safely complete a sponge bath gently, given Mom’s lack of strength.

As to Nerissa, well her last visit was a total disaster. It was hard to communicate, let alone get her to do the tasks assigned. That merely adds stress to Mom, and takes what little strength she has, and uses it up way too fast. It makes for a tough night, and sometimes next day or two.

I wonder, what about those elderly patients, who have no one at home, when the Beacon Community Services worker arrive?

  • Consider that there is no phoning of Patients, when the schedule is changed.
  • Think about how you are in your twilight years, and suddenly are confronted by someone you have never met before?
  • How does it feel to have to explain what a person is there for, when you yourself are a bit unfocused?

It makes me wonder, if society really cares about those who are elderly.

I am tired, and perhaps I expect too much.  Maybe the Eskimos had it right, and when someone gets old, becomes a drag on the community they are set adrift on a slab of ice, to drift along the frozen water, until they perish.   I can’t accept that, but it seems that is a lot kinder than what we are subjecting our elderly to.

Maybe it is just being old fashioned, but I wonder, how will it be if I reach the age of Eighty, never mind Ninety Four?

Even if you are not trained, if you have being doing this job for a few months, you should have picked up some knowledge, some inkling of how to treat old people. Yet it seems that isn’t the case.

I should have cancelled this afternoons worker as well, least Mom wouldn’t be drifting off a half hour after she finally left. I mean she is exhausted, from being rushed, and being treated roughly, or maybe the better term is  carelessly.

I simply do not get it, but what I do get, is that this simply isn’t fair.

It is a Snow Day

  • Posted on January 18, 2012 at 2:37 pm

Winter has arrived today.

Lots of snow on the ground, more than yesterday, but if you are used to it, well, you’d laugh at the amount. I mean it is about an inch or two, which isn’t a lot, but here in this city, it is like the end of the world.

Which of course also means, changes for workers for Mom.

Which I can understand.

The real issue, is that companies like Beacon Community Services are not equipped to handle emergencies, given they can’t handle the day to day routine.

These firms need to have on hand, a supply of substitutes, who can pop in at a minutes notice, and effectively help those who need it.

Course in an ideal world, the regular workers would ALL be properly trained, so they could go from one patient to another, and be effective. Unfortunately, that simply isn’t the case with most of the current crop of BCS employees.   It starts at the top, and when the Top is only interested in her stipend, well, why should those under her, care for anything else but their own stipend?

Thankfully there are still some old fashioned people working there, like Tracy, Trinity and others, who care about the patient, not about the money.

I think we could add Tammy to that list, who was this mornings substitute.   She followed the instructions, and did an okay job of it too.  Least she didn’t just accept what BCS told her.  Maybe that is the key for substitutes.  Instead of listening to what the Company tells them, they should listen to what the Patient tells them?

It’s Just One Day, Right?

  • Posted on August 14, 2011 at 9:04 am

What does one day of inconvenience matter to a person who is 94?

Shit happens, right? I mean a worker gets sick, or goes on holidays, so its life, not a big deal, right? 

Uh, NO!

You can’t help it when people get sick, nor can you expect them to not take vacations, but IF ( and in the case of Beacon Community Services, that is a HUGE IF ) you are a responsible business, you plan for those occurrences.  After all, you know it will happen, so smart business people plan for it.

Obvious that Beacon Community Services is not run by Smart People.  Just GREEDY ones.

Today’s debacle was slightly muted by the fact that the substitute was familiar and competent.  The regular worker however, wasn’t informed of the change until this morning, nor was the substitute.   Isn’t that nice, a great way to treat your employees. 

Thing is, I saw the change on the schedule Friday evening.   How come the workers weren’t informed then?

Only reason I found out, and checked the schedule was that my normal sleep in day was changing. David needed to so something this morning, so we swapped sleep in days.  First I checked to insure we had the regular worker.  As there was a change for today, it worked out okay to swap sleep in days.

Course, NO CALL FROM BEACON to inform us of the change, so IF I hadn’t checked the schedule, this would have been a surprise.  It also means, that if I hadn’t changed days with David, I’d have lost my sleep in day, because when it’s a substitute, I have to be up, to handle it.

And they wonder why I get upset at them?  When you get only one day per week, to sleep in, it is a big deal. It is the only time for it, when you can let your guard down, for a few extra hours.  Doesn’t mean the sleep is any more restful, just that you get more of it.  That helps a guy get through the rest of the week, but that is about me, not Mom.

AND THAT IS WHAT MATTERS…  MOM

Seniors of her advanced years are more prone to having things go wrong. Upsetting the routine, only acerbates those conditions she is dealing with, on a daily basis. Right now for example, her groin infection has a sore within it. It is extremely tender, and so extra care has to be taken in the cleaning & drying. Something a regular worker would know, and handle.  A substitute, no matter how good, isn’t going to know it as well, or do it as well.  

Add into that, the lack of knowledge on the routine, on how to assist Mom in being washed, and you have a needless painful experience for someone, first thing in the morning.  Now today’s worker is good, but hasn’t been here for awhile. And so she isn’t quite sure how to get Mom in and out of the bathroom, how to handle her.  It isn’t her fault, but it is BCS’s fault, because the regular worker wasn’t sick, she was simply swapped over elsewhere.

I repeat myself, but it is critical for the care of Seniors, that routine be kept in tact, as much as is humanly possible. It is also very critical that when substitutes are necessary, that they are capable to handle all contingencies, not just be treating people all the same.  Each person is different, and advance notice for both the patient, the caregiver, the support worker, is vital to insure that the disruption of the routine is mitigated as much as possible.

Again, something Beacon Community Services UTTERLY FAILS AT ACCOMPLISHING.

But then, should anyone be surprised, as this is about business,

not about caring for people.

Tough Call To Make, Thanks BCS

  • Posted on June 8, 2011 at 4:02 pm
This entry is part 23 of 24 in the series Quality of Life

Background : Mom has gotten an infection in her toe, that is just as resilient as the one in her groin, or so it seems. It has also spread from just the baby toe, to basically her foot. It has become painful for her to walk, so we are using a transport chair ( scaled down version of a wheelchair ). Even just sitting, her foot can throb at times, and well, it doesn’t help her tremors, or her focus.

The Situation : Our regular home support worker, was off last weekend, and this weekend, because of holidays. Hey, they are entitled to have one, so we had substitutes last weekend. Colleen and Amy, who we’ve had before. Both are okay, not great, not one’s I would have as regulars. We have them again this weekend.

Now, Colleen, well she did okay on Saturday. Needed a bit of direction, but managed and Mom wasn’t too stressed out afterwards.  Unfortunately I can’t say the same for Amy on Sunday. I’ve just finally managed to contain the groin infection again, and this afternoon, the foot looks a bit better.

The Issue : I have to decide now, if I will cancel Sunday with Beacon Community Services, or allow Amy to return, and perhaps add to Mom’s pain & stress.

I did call them today, to see about a replacement, but gee, there just isn’t anyone available. Sunday being their worst day as no one wants to work on Sunday, so it seems.

Yeah, I was born on a turnip truck yesterday.

Honestly, they don’t have any workers to fill in on Sunday? So let me see, one of the workers phones in sick, or books off, and hey, the patient just suffers, ‘cuz they don’t have anyone to fill in?  Not bloody likely.

Now Amy is okay, if things are okay. Doesn’t have a clue on how to use a wheeler, and frankly, not too sure if she can handle someone Mom’s weight ( 125 lbs ) and frailty.  Perhaps she does fine when no one is nearby, but I had to help her get Mom into the bathroom, then get her on the bench to be washed.

Had to also change her night shirt too, as well, we changed that first, then sat her down on a wet bench.  Brilliant, let’s add to the laundry, ‘cuz really I don’t have enough to make up a third load. ( Mom’s incontinence is pretty bad some days, worse when she is stressed out, Sunday being one of those days )

Not only did I have to show her how to get Mom into the bathroom, SAFELY, but had to help in getting Mom onto the bench. And that too, wasn’t ideal, because she really didn’t have a clue on how to insure Mom was properly seated on the bench. She was half on, half off, and that isn’t comfortable.

The washing was pretty half assed too. But then, given how she worked, it didn’t surprise me much. The lack of a proper washing in the groin, and drying, added to the discomfort, and caused the infection to flare up again. ( I did have it under control, until the combination of Saturday & Sunday )

My Dilema : So the question I have to answer now, is do I cancel Sunday with Amy, and wind up doing it myself, which isn’t ideal. I can do it, but it is rather embarassing for Mom, and you know, at 94 she is entitled to some dignity.

If I don’t cancel, I’ll spend the better part of next week, getting both infections back under control, and dealing with Mom’s nervousness.  Hell, I don’t even know if I can get the foot infection back under control now, never mind next week. ( In fairness, the infection is one of those, that won’t go away, and this weeks flare up is not all the fault of Sunday’s piss poor bathing. )

The reason why no one else can come in place of Amy, is IN MY MIND, that the scheduler simply didn’t want to do it, It would mean having to do some juggling perhaps, but the real underlying reason is that Beacon Community services has no proper plan in place, to include Substitutes.

After all, having properly trained personnel isn’t a priority now, so why have substitutes on stand by?

IT IS ABOUT THE PROFITS – GOTTA PAY $250,000.00 SALARIES TO THE CEO

How Quickly Things Can Change

  • Posted on June 2, 2011 at 8:33 am
This entry is part 22 of 24 in the series Quality of Life

Another example of why it is important to have regular workers.  They know the average, they can spot the subtle changes, such as just how wet she is, in the morning, or how much better a toe looks, or doesn’t look.

Like last night, everything was fine, but not this morning.

Mom is fighting a toe fungal infection, and it looked like we had finally under control, until this morning. Suddenly there is swelling around the little toe, and the redness is back.  It is also very painful, which means the wheeler, instead of the walker.

Saturday & Sunday are scheduled substitutes.  Oh this is not going to be fun, because the two scheduled, are okay, but not for when she is in pain. Specially the one scheduled for Sunday. Problem is, Beacon simply does NOT have enough qualified workers, to substitute.

AND NOW Mom, a lady of 94, will suffer because of it.  This is the NEW ORDER, established by the Conservatives. Oh you can call the Provincial Government Liberals, call them Socialists even, but it doesn’t alter the fact that they are nothing more than an imitation of the Harper Alliance Party.

Yes we do need to watch the money, but we need to get VALUE for the money we spend. BCS needs to update it’s employees, so that qualified workers are hired, not just cheap fill ins. The Government needs to MONITOR these employees, and NOT RELY ON BEACON to run a tight and effecient and competent ship.

Call them a Charity if you want, but the bottom line for them, and for VIHA, is PROFITS.

AND IT IS THE OLD AND INFIRMED THAT PAY THE PRICE FOR THAT, AT THE EXPENSE OF THEIR HEALTH, OF THEIR QUALITY OF LIFE.

The Aftermath

  • Posted on May 3, 2011 at 1:44 pm

Sorry, no I am not talking about the aftermath of the Federal Election. That’s for my other blog.  I am talking about the aftermath of having a substitute, who simply didn’t read the care plan, before showing up.

I suppose my biggest beef, is in the quality of staff being hired by Beacon Community Services, in their training, and in their willingness to actually care for an older person, such as Mom, who is going ot be 94 this month.

To begin with, BCS needs to have qualified staff who can step in, when a regularly assigned worker is sidelined.  Ours was today, and one hopes she’ll be back tomorrow, but the issue is, that BCS needs to have specially trained workers, who can float, go from new client to new client.

It isn’t fair to the Worker to take them from a regular, then dump them into a new situation. Nor is it fair on the Patient.  What is worse though, is the lack of actual caring for the Patient.

I mean, NO you don’t take a naked 93 year old to the bedroom to change her, when she tells you to do it in the bathroom. Never mind that she is standing naked, door open, and staring out at the street.

NO you don’t make a 93 year old walk more than she needs to, or stand more than she should. Especially when you have been told that she has trouble walking, has trouble standing.

NO you don’t make a 93 year old stand unattended, when she is prone to tremors, shakes, that effect her ability to maintain her balance.

NO you don’t rush her along, simply because you want to get the hell out.

NO you don’t pull on the walker, when she isn’t supported, or aware you are doing that.

NO you don’t PUSH on the walker, to push the door open more.

NO you don’t leave her to brush her own teeth, without making sure she is stable

NO you don’t leave her standing, naked, while you go make the bed, and put some of the dirty linen in the laundry basket.

NO you don’t wash her by telekineses. You actually USE water, and SOAP.

Today’s substitute worker, took those NO’s and made them ALL YESES. Not what I’d call steller or even close to being caring. Yet she claims to have 7 years of experience in this. I don’t know, but I sure as hell hope her regular patients don’t get what I experienced today.

There appears to be a genuine lack of caring, in people today. I know, I get frustrated, get irritated even, with how things are, when dealing with mom. Yet, I strive to not take it out on her, or David. I don’t always succeed, but then I am here 24 hours a day, seven days a week, dealing with it.  These workers are here for FIFTY MINUTES.

How many will die, as a result of this uncaring attitude & corporate greed?

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